Jaguars have plenty of reason to think 'big' as they head to Houston to face the Texans

It won't take much for the Jacksonville Jaguars (7-3) to get up for Sunday's Week 12 matchup against the Houston Texans (6-4) on the road at NRG Stadium.

The game will kick off at 1 p.m. and will be broadcast locally on CBS. The last time the two teams faced off against each other, in Week 3, the Texans won 37-17.

Score predictions! Jacksonville Jaguars at Houston Texans

The motivation is simple: clear the road to win the AFC South.

Though this matchup won't necessarily determine who wins the South, it certainly carries those feelings outside of the building and perhaps less frequently inside, too, in terms of importance. In 43 other matchups against the Texans, Sunday's game will mark the first that the two teams have met this late in the season with records above .500.

The two teams came close to that in Week 16 in 2004 when the 8-6 Jaguars faced the 6-8 Texans, but they haven't been close since.

Still, Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson has a fine line to balance with his messaging this week. While on one hand, you want to highlight the importance of the game, you also don't want to make the game more than what it is — it's not the Super Bowl, and it's not a game that decides the season as the clock hits 0:00.

Gameday coverage: Jacksonville Jaguars take on Houston Texans with AFC South lead at stake

"It’s not the end of the year, but it’s big because it’s the next game. It’s big because it’s the AFC South. It’s big because both teams are playing well. It’s been a while since both teams have been in this situation together," Pederson said Friday.

"I think all of that plays into how big this type of football game is. You still have to approach it, quite honestly, no different than last week or the week before. You have to go play and calm your mind and execute your game plan.”

Jaguars left tackle Cam Robinson said that the team understands this game's importance.

"It's been preached to us. We know the magnitude of this game, but we know it's not the end-all-be-all. We know it's not the Super Bowl, but we do know it's a big game, we do know it's a game we need to be prepared for," Robinson said Friday. "We know the type of atmosphere we're about to walk into. We know the type of team we're about to play."

The Jaguars have a big opportunity in front of them. With a win, they'll hold a two-game lead in the division while giving the Texans a tough road back to catch up. Jacksonville will have one more divisional matchup on the docket with Tennessee in Week 18 and control their own destiny the rest of the way.

If the rest of the season falls their way, they'll win the AFC South for a second year in a row for the first time since 1998-99.

Jaguars need an answer for red-hot Texans QB C.J. Stroud

Texans rookie QB C.J. Stroud is the front-runner for the league's Offensive Rookie of the Year honor and his play backs up that positioning.

Through the year, Stroud has completed 62.8 percent of his passes for 2,962 yards, 17 touchdowns and five interceptions. Three of Stroud's five interceptions came last week against the Arizona Cardinals. His rookie performance is miles ahead of what Lawrence produced during his rookie season (2021).

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Pederson said this week that he sees the confidence Stroud has in his team and the confidence the team has in Stroud. That's a reflection on Texans coach DeMeco Ryans, he said.

"For a rookie quarterback to come in and perform at this level, the way he’s thrown the ball, I just really admire his poise quite frankly," Pederson said. "He’s putting the ball where he wants to put it, meaning it is very accurate throws. He’s got the ability to escape and move and still keep his eyes down the field. I think that’s a unique trait for a young quarterback to be able to do."

When the two teams met for the first time in Week 3, Stroud completed 20 of 30 passes for 280 yards and two touchdowns. He was sacked zero times despite missing four out of five starting offensive linemen.

When the Jaguars get to NRG Stadium Sunday, they'll be greeted by a couple of veterans who didn't suit up last time, left tackle Laremey Tunsil and left guard Tytus Howard. The Texans did lose starting rookie center Jerrett Patterson due to an ankle injury a few weeks ago, however.

All three phases for Jaguars must improve from Week 3 performance

The Jaguars want to wipe away their Week 3 performance against the Texans and welcome in a new one.

All three of the phases underperformed the last go-round.

The Jaguars' offense turned the ball over twice, including one interception and one fumble. The fumble occurred in Houston territory as the Jaguars attempted to cut into a 14-0 Texans lead. Instead, Houston drove down the field, scoring a field goal to make it 17-0 at halftime.

Jacksonville's defense didn't fare any better, giving up one touchdown on a busted coverage and another long completion that led to a Texans touchdown.

Special teams, which is usually a wash, hurt the Jaguars in Week 3, too.

Jacksonville had a field goal blocked, missed another and allowed a fullback to return the ball 85 yards for a touchdown. The kickoff return occurred just as Jacksonville cut Houston's lead to 7 (17-10) late in the third quarter.

"I felt like they had more energy, they played faster in that game than we did," Pederson said of Week 3.

"They came out and were the aggressor really from the jump. We never really responded throughout the course of the game. It was warm here and hot, but it didn’t seem to bother them. Our execution was poor that day. Since that time, we’ve responded well and rebounded well, we got ourselves back on track.”

Jaguars rule out CB Tyson Campbell vs. Texans

It's been an up-and-down year thus far for cornerback Tyson Campbell.

Campbell was ruled out Friday due to a lingering hamstring injury originally suffered during the team's win over the Indianapolis Colts.

He missed the next two games before returning in Week 10 against the San Francisco 49ers and re-aggravating the hamstring. He missed last week's game against the Titans as a result.

His plan for return is currently unknown and second-year CB Montaric "Buster" Brown will likely start in his place as he did against the Titans last week.

"Everybody heals faster or slower than the next guy. You take them individually and our team of doctors and trainers do a good job of getting them back," Pederson said of Campbell's injury. "Especially now that this is kind of [Campbell's] second incident because he’s missed time before. We want to make sure he’s one hundred percent upstairs before we put him back out there.”

Texans rule out S Jimmie Ward, WR Noah Brown vs. Jaguars

The Texans don't enter the matchup clean, either. They'll be without both safety Jimmie Ward and receiver Noah Brown, both key contributors on their respective sides of the football.

Brown quickly became the Texans' best deep-threat player this year, hauling in 21 catches for 439 yards and a touchdown. He missed last week's game due to the same knee injury.

Ward, a veteran safety who signed with the Texans before this season, re-uniting with coach Ryans, has played just six games for the club and has missed the last two games due to a hamstring injury.

The Texans also listed backup LB Jake Hansen (hamstring/hand) as out, while listing QB Case Keenum (calf), RB Dameon Pierce (ankle) and center/guard Juice Scruggs (hamstring) as questionable. Both Pierce and Scruggs practiced in full this week, so they ought to be able to give it a go.

Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82.

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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars set to face Houston Texans in important AFC South matchup