The New England Patriots are heavy favorites to improve to 3-0 in Week 3 when the Jacksonville Jaguars travel to Gillette Stadium on Sunday.
After earning victories over the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills in the first two weeks, the Patriots look like a juggernaut on offense. Tom Brady already has 754 passing yards and seven touchdowns through the air, each of which lead the NFL, and he hasn't yet thrown an interception. It's still early, but a 119.9 passer rating for Brady is the highest of his career in a season, edging the 117.2 he put up during his MVP season in 2007.
Yet, despite being two touchdown underdogs, the Jaguars enter with a renewed optimism after defeating the Miami Dolphins in Week 2, 23-20. The Jaguars' defense is allowing fewer than 3 yards per carry and ranks in the top 10 in yardage and points allowed.
Of course, those numbers came against offenses that aren't clicking quite like the Patriots are. After slowing the Dolphins and Carolina Panthers, the Jaguars will now have the tall task of keeping Rob Gronkowski -- who already has 207 receiving yards and four touchdowns -- in check. Julian Edelman is also off to a good start with 22 receptions for 194 yards and two touchdowns.
While keeping the Patriots from torching them on offense is key, the Jaguars will be in trouble if the team's offense isn't able to put up some points of their own to keep up. Blake Bortles had the best game of his young career against the Dolphins when he tallied 273 passing yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions, but a quick start to the game was followed by the Jacksonville offense coming to a grinding halt in the second half, including a stretch of three consecutive three-and-out drives.
With Julius Thomas still recovering from a thumb injury, the Jaguars will have to rely on young weapons like T.J. Yeldon and Allen Robinson to sustain drives against a Patriots defense that ranks No. 29 in yardage allowed through two weeks. Jaguars punter Bryan Anger is already averaging six punts per game, and that's just not going to cut it against the Patriots.
One thing that the New England defense has done well, though, is find interceptions. The Patriots lead the NFL with four interceptions, which could spell trouble for Bortles, who has been plagued by turnovers in his career. The second-year passer has finished just four of his 15 career games without an interception.
Never before have the Jaguars managed to defeat the Patriots in the regular season, and they carry an 0-6 record against New England all-time. It's the only team the Jaguars have never beat before, and the Patriots have lost a game to every team except Jacksonville.
The caveat is that the Jaguars did earn a postseason victory over the Patriots in 1999, although New England has also ended playoff runs for Jacksonville on three other occasions.
The NFL doesn't currently offer a live streaming service for fans in the United States or Mexico. Live radio broadcasts are available through NFL Game Pass, but on-demand replays of the games aren't available until later.
How to watch online
When: 1 p.m. ET
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Mass.
TV: CBS
Announcers: Kevin Harlan, Rich Gannon
Online: NFL Game Pass