Everything You Need to Know About Patriots vs. Jaguars Week 7

As part of the NFL's continued mission to grow the game, the league has taken regular season games to international fans. Unfortunately, those fans at Wembley Stadium in London will be subject to watching two 1-5 football teams on Sunday. The New England Patriots and Jacksonville Jaguars will face off in a Week 7 matchup.

The Patriots – although coming off of a 20-point loss at the hands of the Houston Texans – are heading across the pond with a new breath of optimism after third-overall pick Drake Maye made his starting debut.

Meanwhile, the Jacksonville Jaguars are engulfed in turmoil. Jacksonville played in London last week – a 35-16 loss to the Chicago Bears. The Jaguars have heavily underperformed in 2024, limping to a 1-5 start in their first six games. There have been calls for Doug Pederson's job, as well as the less likely scenario of benching Trevor Lawrence. Jacksonville has also had to face the music 4,000 miles away from home, staying the week in the U.K. in between international games.

The Patriots pulled off an upset as eight-point road favorites in Week 1 with a 16-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, but the Pats have lost five straight games since. With New England ranking among the lowest-scoring teams in the league, veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett was lifted for rookie Drake Maye.

Each squad is looking to find their footing after both teams have started 1-5. Which team will pick up their much-needed second win? Here is everything that you need to know about the Week 7 London Game between the New England Patriots and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The Nuts and Bolts: Start Time, How to Watch, Etc.

• Home: Jacksonville Jaguars
• Road: New England Patriots
• Venue: Wembley Stadium — London, United Kingdom
• Date: Oct. 20, 2024
• Time: 9:30 a.m. Eastern
• TV Coverage: NFL Network/WCVB (Channel 5 News)
• Radio: 98.5 FM The Sports Hub

Please note that although the game will be broadcast on NFL Network, the NFL also requires the game to be made available on local broadcast stations within the home market of the competing teams. Viewers in the Boston market can also find the game on WCVB (ABC Channel 5 News).

Patriots vs. Jaguars Prediction

The 2024 season hasn't left much room for optimism for the Patriots, but there is a chance that the Pats are able to take advantage of a spiraling Jaguars team on Sunday. That locker room might be content with sleep-walking through 60 minutes of football and just looking ahead to the flight home after a long stint overseas.

As far as X's and O's go, Jacksonville's scheme has been pass-heavy through six games. The offense ranks 11th with 33.3 pass attempts per game while ranking 30th out of 32 teams in run attempts per game. Last week, Houston ran all over New England to the tune of 192 yards on the ground. Travis Etienne – the Jaguars lead back – is unlikely to play against the Patriots, although Tank Bigsby has played well behind Etienne. It will be interesting to see if Pederson is willing to go more run-heavy against New England on Sunday or if he will hold true to the run/pass balance he's shown so far this season.

With Drake Maye at the helm, the Patriots offense looked revitalized against the Texans. Don't mistake it for the Greatest Show on Turf, but the visual presentation of the offense was night and day. Interestingly, New England put up more total yards in their 15-10 Week 5 loss to Miami than they did in Maye's debut, despite the increased point total. In that vein, it will be key for the Patriots to turn yardage into points as they did last week.

After four turnovers against Houston, New England will also need to take better care of the football on Sunday. As Maye continues to get his feet wet, he could still be turnover-prone, so it will be crucial for the Patriots to protect against giving Jacksonville a short field.

New England might be able to take advantage of the disarray on the other sideline and upset a more talented Jacksonville team behind a re-energized offense led by Drake Maye.

Prediction: Patriots 27, Jaguars 17

Patriots vs. Jaguars Injury Report

The New England injury report was highlighted by Rhamondre Stevenson's absence after the running back missed Week 6 with a foot injury. Drake Maye was also an interesting inclusion on the injury report with an apparent knee injury, although the third overall pick was listed as a full participant. It is definitely something to keep an eye on.

Tackle Vederian Lowe and corner Marcus Jones were also listed as non-participants. Lowe – who had emerged as the team's left tackle – suffered an ankle injury shortly into Sunday's game and was scheduled to undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury. Jones, who recorded an interception against Houston, did not participant on Wednesday due to a groin injury and an illness.

Jacksonville's injury report included six players – with Arik Armstead, Gabe Davis, Evan Engram, Travis Etienne Jr., and Tyson Campbell listed as limited and Anton Harrison listed as a full participant.

Pederson called Etienne "week-to-week" on Monday after the running back left last Sunday's game early with a hamstring injury, which would insinuate that Etienne would miss at least Week 7. His limited designation on Wednesday suggests that there could be an outside chance that the former first-rounder goes on Sunday. With Etienne banged up, Tank Bigsby has stepped up and become the team's leading rusher while averaging 7.2 yards per carry.

Two more of Lawrence's targets – Gabe Davis and Evan Engram – were both limited for Wednesday's practice as well. Engram returned from a four-game absence to rack up over 100 yards receiving on 10 catches against Chicago.

The game status report must be submitted by 4 p.m. ET on Friday and will provide better insight into which players will and won't be available for Sunday as gameday quickly approaches.

Weather Report: Quintessential London Weather

Jacksonville and New England will kick off at 2:30 p.m. local time in London. In London fashion, rain is on the radar with light rain expected to turn into showers in the afternoon. The weather should hover around 60 degrees with high humidity of 88 percent.

Although wind in London is forecasted – with gusts possibly reaching 40 miles per hour, Wembley Stadium's unique design should limit the impact of that on gameplay. Wembley has a roof that functions more as a canopy – covering the stands while the field is left vulnerable to the elements. The stadium's architecture should keep those gusts from infiltrating the playing surface to their full extent.

Patriots vs. Jaguars Betting Odds

Spread: JAX -5.5 (-110) | NE +5.5 (-110)
Moneyline: JAX (-230) | NE (+190)
Total: 42.5 — Over (-110) | Under (-110)

Both the Jaguars and Patriots have struggled against the spread this season. Jacksonville is 2-4 against the spread, with an ATS +/- (the average amount of points that the team covers the spread by) of -9.9. Meanwhile, New England is 1-4-1 against the spread with an ATS +/- of -4.

The over/under is 3-3 for both the Patriots and the Jaguars this season through six games apiece for each team.

A $10 bet on the Jacksonville moneyline at FanDuel Sportsbook would win $4.35, while betting on underdogs New England to pull off the upset would win $19.

Patriots vs. Jaguars Matchup History

The Patriots and Jaguars will meet for the 15th time on Sunday. The Patriots have dominated the series to date – winning 12 of the previous 14 matchups. Five of the meetings between the two franchises have come during the postseason. New England has won four of the five playoff clashes – including AFC Championship Game victories in 1997 and 2018.

The Jaguars and Patriots most recently met in Week 17 of the 2021 season, a 50-10 drubbing by New England at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots racked up 471 yards of offense and picked off Trevor Lawrence three times. Mac Jones threw for three touchdowns and Rhamondre Stevenson added 107 yards on the ground.

Sunday will mark New England's fifth international game, and third at Wembley Stadium. In two previous trips, the Patriots are 2-0 at Wembley while winning by a combined score of 80-14. New England's other two international games were in Mexico City (2017) and the disastrous loss in Frankfurt, Germany last season that essentially sealed the fate of Bill Belichick.

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Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.