FOXBORO — There's no doubt the Jaguars defense is one of the best in the league, but it may not be as good as some think.
Jacksonville had the No. 2 ranked defense overall in the regular season, as it allowed 286.1 yards per game, and then was also the No. 2 defense in terms of points per game, allowing just 16.8.
But, when looking at who the Jaguars actually went up against over the course of the season, it may have inflated these numbers a bit.
Jacksonville faced 11 offenses that finished 17th or below in total offense and faced only one which ranked higher than eighth.
Also, it has allowed 40 or more points twice in its last four games, including to the 20th ranked 49ers offense when Jimmy Garoppolo led them to a 44-33 win in Week 16. And most recently, the defense allowed 42 points to the Steelers, including 469 passing yards and five touchdowns to Ben Roethlisberger in the divisional round last weekend. Not to mention it allowed 37 points to the Titans in Week 2.
"I don't think it's a major of mystery of, 'Oh my God, where are they? What defense are they in?' They don't care about that," Bill Belichick said Monday on Dale & Holley with Keefe. "They want to beat you where they need to be and then play aggressively from there. Blocking them and getting away from the defenders is what we talked about, that is going to be a big challenge.
"We certainly can't stand there and hold the ball all day. That won't work. We're going to have to make some yards running the ball, but that's easier said than done, too. You have to block them and they have a lot of hard guys to block, and they are fast. It's hard to get outside. They do a good job."
Here are some of the quarterbacks the Jaguars defense faced this year: Tom Savage, Josh McCown, Jacoby Brissett (twice), DeShone Kizer and Blaine Gabbert. Certainly facing this group had something to do with the defensive numbers.
Also, the unit scored nine defensive touchdowns this season, which is the most scored by a defense since the 2012 Bears. Even more impressive is eight of them came on the road. But at the same time, there has to be some luck involved. Nine defensive touchdowns is an insane number and likely a case of a few of them having the ball bounce their way more so than it being a skilled play.
This isn't to suggest the Jaguars defense isn't talented, it's just worth pointing out that while it is ranked No. 2 in the top categories, a quick glance at who its faced suggests there may be more to that story.
