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Jaguars Playoff Picture: Seeding, Remaining Schedule After 42-7 Rout of Colts
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- Jaguars Playoff Picture: Seeding, Remaining Schedule After 42-7 Rout of Colts
Jacksonville spent its bye week watching the rest of the AFC South lose. Back at a rain-soaked EverBank Stadium on Sunday, the Jaguars made sure the division race stayed lopsided with a 42-7 rout of the Colts that moved them to 5-2 and three games clear of Houston and Indianapolis.
Trevor Lawrence needed 14 passes to throw for 210 yards and three touchdown passes before giving way to Quinn Ewers early in the fourth quarter. Bhayshul Tuten ran for a career-high 104 yards, and Rayuan Lane III returned an interception 92 yards for a touchdown just before halftime.
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"The guys came in with a little blood in the water and we wanted to be able to jump on these guys at home," Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said after the game .
Jaguars hold the AFC's No. 4 seed
Jacksonville Jaguars safety Rayuan Lane III (25) celebrates his pick six in the second quarter during an NFL football matchup at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, November, 1, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]
If the season ended today, Jacksonville would be the No. 4 seed in the AFC playoff picture and host the Kansas City Chiefs in the wild-card round. The Buffalo Bills (6-1) hold the top seed and the conference's only bye, with the Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers, both 6-2, at Nos. 2 and 3.
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Division winners take the top four seeds, so the Jaguars stay ahead of the 5-2 Chiefs as long as they lead the AFC South. Moving up is harder. Jacksonville lost 20-13 in Denver in Week 2, which hands the Broncos the head-to-head tiebreaker . The Jaguars do own wins over the Bengals and Patriots, the current Nos. 6 and 7 seeds, after beating New England 35-6 at home in Week 3 and winning 22-17 in Cincinnati a week later.
Jacksonville came out of the bye with the AFC's safest division lead . A three-game cushion with 10 games to play only adds to it.
What the Jaguars' remaining schedule looks like
Nov 1, 2026; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen looks on during the first quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images
Seven of the final 10 games are on the road, and the stretch opens on a short week. Jacksonville plays at Baltimore on Thursday night, then visits Tennessee on Nov. 15 and the New York Giants on Nov. 22 before hosting the Titans on Nov. 29.
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December is where the seeding gets sorted out. The Jaguars visit Chicago on Dec. 6 and host Pittsburgh on Monday night, Dec. 14, then close at Houston, at Dallas on Sunday night, at home against Washington and at Indianapolis. The Steelers game is the one to circle, since it settles a head-to-head tiebreaker with the team sitting one spot ahead of Jacksonville.
On paper, the path is soft. Those 10 opponents are a combined 30-44-2, and only the Giants (4-2-1), Bears (5-2) and Steelers (6-2) have winning records. The Ravens are 4-4 and have dropped three straight, including a 36-10 loss in Buffalo on Sunday.
Health is the bigger worry. Nose tackle DaVon Hamilton left Sunday's game on a cart with a right knee injury, and safety Eric Murray, edge rusher Travon Walker and right guard Ezra Cleveland were also banged up. Jacksonville is already starting Walker Little at left tackle after Anton Harrison's ACL tear , and there are only four days to sort out the rest before kickoff in Baltimore.
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"He's out there laying down and he's reassuring me," Coen said of Hamilton . "That's who he is. He has a smile on his face, actually."
The AFC South is close to settled in Duval. A climb into the top three, and any shot at the bye, will come down to winning in Baltimore, Chicago and Houston and holding serve against Pittsburgh on a Monday night at home.
More on the Jacksonville Jaguars
This story was originally published by Athlon on Nov 2, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
