The Jacksonville Jaguars will open the 2009 season on the road against the division-rival Indianapolis Colts on Sept. 13. The home portion of the Jaguars' schedule begins against defending NFC champion Arizona Cardinals on Sept. 20 and ends with a Thursday night game on NFL Network against Indianapolis on Dec. 17.
When the Jaguars embark upon their 15th season, three of their first four games will be against AFC South opponents, including two on the road, and three of the first four games are against 2008 playoff teams.
Fifteen of the Jaguars' 16 regular season games during the 2009 season will be played on Sundays, with 12 scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET kickoffs and three late afternoon games. The schedule features four playoff teams from 2008 and six games against playoff teams - the Colts and Titans twice, as well as the Cardinals and Dolphins. The Jaguars will have 10 games against teams that finished .500 or better in 2008, and three against division winners.
The Jaguars open the regular season on the road for the second consecutive season and the seventh time in club history. The Jaguars' opener at Indianapolis marks the eighth time that the club will open a regular season against a divisional opponent and third consecutive season. The Jaguars own a 9-5 mark (.643 winning percentage in their 14-year history) in opening day games.
The Jaguars will host defending NFC champion Arizona in their home opener at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium on Sunday, September 20. The Jaguars play back-to-back division games beginning on September 27 at Houston, and host Tennessee on Sunday, October 4. The Jaguars will play their 31st and 32nd games against the Tennessee Titans (including playoffs), the most against any NFL team.
The Jaguars play back-to-back games against NFC opponents as they play at Seattle on Sunday, October 11 and host St. Louis on Sunday, October 18 before observing their bye week. The Seahawks game is the first of two west coast games and marks only the second game at Seattle in franchise history (2001). It is the second consecutive season the club will have a bye in week seven.
Following the bye week, the Jaguars open November with a trip to Tennessee on Sunday, November 1. They host Kansas City the following week on Sunday, November 8 before playing at the New York Jets on Sunday, November 15. The Jaguars return home to face the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, November 22, the third consecutive season the teams will meet. The Jaguars finish the month of November with a road game at San Francisco on Sunday, November 29. It marks the first regular season game in San Francisco in Jaguars history.
The Jaguars conclude the season with three consecutive home games and two road games in December-January. The Jaguars host Houston on Sunday, December 6 and Miami on Sunday, December 13. The Jaguars conclude the home portion of their schedule on Thursday, December 17 by hosting Indianapolis on NFL Network at 8:20 p.m. That game marks the fifth consecutive season the teams will meet in December and second straight season the Jaguars meet the Colts in their home-finale on a Thursday night.
The Jaguars close out the 2009 regular season with back-to-back road games at New England on Sunday, December 27 and at Cleveland on Sunday, January 3. It will mark the ninth time in club history the Jaguars have concluded the regular season on the road, including nine times in the last 10 seasons.
