***TNF IN THE SWAMP - JAX @ TENN***

***JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS @ TENNESSEE TITANS***

The lowly AFC South will take center stage as the Jaguars and Titans will both look to bounce back from losing weeks when they face-off in Nashville tonight. While many groan at the sound of this matchup, I think we could actually be in for somewhat of a treat here. I have a feeling that this will be one of those matchups between two ugly teams that ends up making for a very entertaining game. The Prime Time spotlight is a rare occasion for both of these franchises and they will surely be up for the challenge tonight. Due to the struggles of all four teams in the AFC South, the division remains wide open despite slow starts across the board. That being said, it is technically anybody's to win and these teams have every reason to remain positive and keep improving. This also makes tonight's battle a very meaningful one to both of these franchises. The Jaguars just can't seem to put it all together and last week they screwed the perfect Muck 5 up with a brutal loss against the road warrior Raiders. I really thought that it was a perfect spot for the Jaguar offense to break out of their slump and look more like the one we have seen at times last season and with all the same components, know they are still capable of. As the results show, the Swamp was way off with this prediction as the Raiders demolished the Jags from start to finish. The Jags looked like the packed it in early towards the end and accepted defeat, the 4&25 that they let the Oakland Punter rush for a first down on was the symbol of this to me. They could do nothing right, and it was an embarrassing performance to say the least. QB Blake Bortles is off to the worst start of his young career and seems to be really be struggling with his accuracy. From my observations, he has the time in the pocket needed to throw, and is just missing his targets and is simply not on the same page with his WRs, and they are also not helping him by creating separation and getting open. Bortles is clearly frustrated and so is the rest of Jacksonville. It is rumored that Jags Head Coach Gus Bradley is once again on the hot seat with tonight's game serving as judgement day. However it was reported this week that a mid-season coaching change as such is against how the Jags operate and will give Bradley the remainder of the season to "stake his claim." I got to believe that serves as a bit of relief for Bradley to hear and should alleviate some pressure off of him and allow him to do his job effectively. I also believe that he is a players type of coach and that his guys will have his back and come to play the rest of this season. There was a ton of hype around this team in the preseason, and although they have done everything to severely crush that hype. However as mentioned above, regarding this Division, the season is still young enough for any of these teams to make a push and is there for the taking. Jacksonville owner and pimp Shad Khan took it upon himself and his mustache to march on down to the locker room earlier this week. He apparently met with both the coaches and players and had some sort of "why aren't we winning?" and "help me to help you" type of meeting. Needless to say, the fire has been officially lit for this team to get it right or keep it moving so to speak. I'd say that everybody now has all the motivation in the world to show they belong and are worthy of Jacksonville's future.

The Titans are in a similar situation where the heat is on and they really need a Divisional win here having lost the first two AFC South battles against the Texans and Colts last week. Like Jacksonville, Tennessee is a young team and has the talent to be successful in this league, but struggles at times to put it all together. Last week was a measuring stick for both of these teams in my mind and it showed me that neither of them are ready to conquer that "big game" type spot just yet, AKA they aren't ready to play with the big boys. That is also why tonight's game could be just what the NFL needs right now. With the majority of Prime Time games being snooze fests as of late, a battle of the uglies could be just what the doctor ordered for a nice ratings boost. I anticipate tonight to have a lot of back and forth scoring with both teams having nothing to lose. I think they will both play loose and open up the playbooks right out of the gate. I anticipate the Jags to take shots deep early against an undermanned Titans secondary that has some key injuries and will be without CB Perish Cox & S Rashad Johnson. Basically I beleive that I was a week early with saying that the Jaguar offense would breakout and that tonight could possibly be the night that takes place. I think Bortles and his plethora of dangerous WRs will finally get off the schneid tonight against this secondary. With RB Chris Ivory now back healthy it will help them to establish a run game and open up the play-action downfield. TE Julius Thomas will also be suiting up tonight and I believe he is a key component to Bortles success serving as a veteran safety blanket. Tennessee is a run first offense with the combination of RB DeMarco Murray & Rookie Derrick Henry, AKA Thunder & Thunder and will also surely have success pounding the rock tonight. I expect the Titans to play off of this with some misdirection and option type plays to keep up on the scoreboard. That all being said I think this one will be closet throughout and come down to a big turnover and I really like the Rookie CB Jalen Ramsey for the Jags. This kid is a fiesty and a sparkplug that this defense needs. He has been thrown out of two games already and I think will show out in a big way in his hometown tonight. Bortles has only won like two true road games (not counting London) in his career, that is almost as disgusting as the mustard colored uniforms they will have on tonight. Seems like a good spot for me for him to notch road win 3, so I will take the points. JAGUARS+3