The Daily Sweat: Jaguars-Jets is a surprisingly fun and important Thursday night game

When the NFL schedule was released, the Week 16 Thursday night game had a fun novelty: The top two picks of the 2021 draft, Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson, squaring off.

Nobody figured it would be a great game. You'd have made a lot of money parlaying the Jets and Jaguars both being in the playoff race by the time it happened.

But here we are. The Jaguars are suddenly knocking on the door in the AFC South race, and the Jets are fighting to remain in the AFC wild-card race. The Jets are 2-point favorites at BetMGM.

At first glance it's a little surprising the Jets are favored, and the spread is moving their way (it was Jets -1.5 on Wednesday). If you like betting streaks, you wouldn't take the Jets. They've lost four of five since a big win over the Buffalo Bills before their bye. The Jaguars have won three of four, losing only to the even hotter Detroit Lions, and Trevor Lawrence has been making a star turn. There's no doubt the Jaguars are the hotter team.

There's a case to be made for the Jets. The Jaguars are 2-5 on the road this season. The Jets still have a stellar defense — even better if defensive tackle Quinnen Williams returns from a calf injury — and the Jaguars have some offensive line issues. Left tackle Cam Robinson is out with a torn meniscus. The Jaguars have also followed up big wins with horrible performances before. Also, it's supposed to be rainy and cold in East Rutherford, New Jersey tonight, and that's not great for a team from Florida.

Of course, betting on the Jets means betting on Zach Wilson. Wilson made some plays last week in his return to the starting lineup, but he also missed a lot of throws. It's hard to trust him. The Jets have good players around Wilson but still need competent play from their quarterback. There's also the question if the Jaguars' defense is good enough to take advantage of Wilson's mistakes.

Here's a first look at the sports betting slate for Thursday:

Armed Forces Bowl

There's one bowl game on the schedule. It's the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth, Texas. Air Force will take on Baylor. Baylor is a 3.5-point favorite. Air Force finished well, winning its final four games, while Baylor lost its last three. Air Force rushed for 330.9 yards per game this season, by far the most in college football.

A light night in hoops

There are only two NBA games, and three games with top 25 college basketball teams. Neither NBA matchup is that great. The San Antonio Spurs face the New Orleans Pelicans (-8.5) and the Washington Wizards are at the Utah Jazz (-6.5). The best college game of the night is Missouri vs. No. 16 Illinois. Illinois is favored by 6.5 points. Butler at an up-and-down Creighton team should also be interesting. Creighton is a 7.5-point favorite.

Eight NHL games

We get an afternoon hockey game as the Toronto Maple Leafs (-350) host the Philadelphia Flyers at 2 p.m. ET. That's one of eight games on the schedule. The New York Islanders meet the New York Rangers. The best matchup of the day could be the Calgary Flames at the Los Angeles Kings (-110).

What's the best bet?

I have a pick on the Jaguars that I'm not too sure about. There's a good argument to be made for the Jets, but the Jaguars are clearly the hotter team. For a better bet I'll take Mizzou in that college hoops rivalry game. The Tigers are pretty good and 6.5 points might be a little too much.