Surging Bucs reeling Jaguars control fates in their playoff and division title chases
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) Tampa Bay has won three straight games and Jacksonville has lost three in a row.Like the Buccaneers, though, the Jaguars control their own destiny as the teams Antonio Senzatela Jersey seek division titles and playoff berths.The Bucs (7-7) sit atop the NFC South, tied with the New Orleans Saints. The reeling Jaguars (8-6) have fallen into a first-place tie with Houston and Indianapolis in the AFC South, but hold divisional tiebreaker advantages and can control their fate with a strong finish.There is no room for errors at this point, Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield said. We talked about doing the little things right. You dont have to do anything too special if you do the little things right. You cant have those simple stupid mistakes that cost teams games.ADVERTISEMENT After a 3-1 start to the season, the Bucs lost four straight six of seven overall before rebounding to climb back into a position to win a third straight NFC South title.After hosting Jacksonville on Sunday, theyll finish the regular season with division matchups against the Saints at home and Carolina on the road.Youve got to focus on what you can control," said Mayfield, whos coming off throwing for 381 yards and four touchdowns without an interception in last weeks 34-20 road win over Green Bay.The media is going to go how you play, Mayfield added. "Its going to be result based. You cant listen to that. You cant let that dictate how you prepare or how you play, The sixth-year pro, whos with his fourth team in le s than two years, posted a perfect pa ser rating of 158.3.Weve won three in a row now. But we have to handle it how we need to, be profe sionals about it. This singular game mentality cant change, Mayfield said. The approach that weve had the last few weeks needs to be the same. That will get us to the place we want to go.A month ago, the Jaguars were in the running for the No. 1 playoff seed in the AFC. Consecutive lo ses to Cincinnati, Carlos Gonzalez Jersey Cleveland and Baltimore not only dropped them into a tie with the Texans and Colts, but another stumble down the stretch could undermine their postseason hopes.Jacksonvilles situation is precarious, too, because of the uncertain status of quarterback Trevor Lawrence, whos in the NFLs Ian Desmond Jersey concu sion protocol and could mi s a game for the first time in his three-year career on Sunday.The Jaguars are hoping the No. 1 overall pick from the 2021 draft will clear the protocol by the time the team leaves for Tampa on Saturday. If Lawrence is out, backup C.J. Beathard would make his first start since the 2020 season, when he was with the San Francisco 49ers.Its figuring out how to win a game right now. Everybody has to pay attention to their job and just do whatever theyre asked to do, coaches and players, Jacksonville coach Doug Pederson said.I dont know if you ever want to feel desperate. I think youve got to feel a sense of urgency, youve got to feel your back is against the wall a little bit, Pederson added. Its just time to go play. I dont think you ever want to feel desperate because then you do things out of character.UNDERMANNED JAGSThe Jaguars will be without two of Chad Bettis Jersey their top three receivers. Christian Kirk (groin) and Zay Jones (hamstring/knee) will mi s the game, leaving fellow wideout Calvin Ridley and tight end Evan Engram to pick up the slack against the Buccaneers. Rookie Parker Washington, Agnew and Tim Jones also should get more playing time.Ridley has nine games with fewer than 55 yards receiving this season, including a five-catch, 39-yard effort last week against Baltimore. Engram was held to four catches for 28 yards against the Ravens.We got to pick it up right now, Ridley said.RECORD WATCHJaguars linebacker Josh Allen needs one sack to tie the single-season franchise record set by Calais Campbell (14 ) in 2017. Allen, in the final year of his rookie contract, has a career-high 13 sacks but has failed to record even half of one in Jacksonvilles last two games.He has 41 sacks in five seasons and ranks second in team history behind Tony Brackens (55).MAYFIELD'S IMPACTThe Bucs rave about the job Mayfield has done, taking over at quarterback following the retirement of Tom Brady. He has thrown for 3,315 yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions with his fourth team since entering the league as the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2018.Hes done a lot for us this year," coach Todd Bowles said. "You cant imagine the things you dont see on the field that hes done for us, from a team standpoint, from a mentality standpoint, from a bringing-guys-together and bringing-guys-along standpoint not to mention how well hes been playing of lateBowles added that the 28-year-old Mayfield has come in and simply tried to be himself not replace Brady.He just put his head down and he worked and he won the team over, which is what was great about it, Bowles said. Hes doing things his way and were doing things our way. Its not as pretty as when Tom was here, but Todd Helton Jersey were scrappy and were pulling them out and were getting things done.___AP Pro Football Writer Mark Long contributed from Jacksonville.___More AP NFL: