JACKSONVILLE – The atmosphere will be intense, the crowd hostile.

That will be the scenario for the Jaguars Sunday when they play their biggest game of the season to date. They will be on the road, with the opponent – the Houston Texans – having won their last four home games. The good news for the Jaguars?

They have been good on the road this season. Very, very good.

"It's something we emphasized this season, for sure," quarterback Trevor Lawrence said as the AFC South-leading Jaguars (7-3) prepared to play the Texans (6-4) at NRG Stadium Sunday at 1 p.m.

That emphasis has yielded results, with a dramatic improvement on the road that began late in the 2022 season turning into a team strength this season.

"It speaks to our preparation and our focus when we get on the road," Jaguars left tackle Cam Robinson said. "I think we have a heightened sense of what we need to get done, a heightened sense of awareness. Those road elements kind of bring us together a little more."

The Jaguars are 4-0 on the road this season. Including a home victory over the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium in London, they have won all five of their games away from Jacksonville this season. They have won their last seven regular-season road games – and their last eight regular-season games away from Jacksonville – dating to last season.

Their last regular-season road loss came at Detroit last December 4, 40-14. They had lost 20 of 21 road games before the streak began and did not win a road game in 2020 or 2021.

The seven-game road regular-season winning streak ties the franchise record set in 1999.

"That was a point of emphasis in training camp," Lawrence said. "We talked about our season, things we needed to get better at, things we did well. That was something we thought we needed to get better at. There is something to getting out there a day early, getting to the hotel … It's just you. You have time to prepare all to yourself, no distractions.

"Obviously from a communication standpoint, it's not to your advantage. You just have to really communicate, really be on the same page and you have to be prepared. Especially in those situations when communication is limited, you have to really be prepared and know your job."

Said Head Coach Doug Pederson, "Maybe a little bit is because we're just together more on the road from the time we leave to the time we get back off the plane to go home Sunday night. It's a great group of guys, too. When they're together, they enjoy being around each other. That goes a long way to the success of any team."

Lawrence this week spoke of the satisfaction of winning on the road and quieting an opponent's home crowd in the second half.

"That's something that we've tried to emphasize in our games on the road," Lawrence said. "That's a cool feeling when you go to someone else's stadium and get into a position where they're not even loud in the fourth quarter. You kind of look forward to that challenge of everybody against you, kind of back against the wall. That feeling of being on the road is a real thing.

"We have to keep that going. Obviously, this is a big road game. We're going to play in big road games to finish the year that you're going to have to win. This is a good challenge for us this week."

NOTABLE

• The Jaguars enter the final seven games of the season 7-3 and a game ahead of the Texans in the AFC South after being 3-7, four games behind the Tennessee Titans at the same time last season. The Jaguars won six of their last seven games last season to win their first division title in five seasons. "It shouldn't change the mindset," Pederson said. "It's just that the team has done better this year. We've done well. We've put ourselves in this position, but we still have to understand that we still haven't done anything. We got in the playoffs last year, but didn't do anything. We didn't finish. We have to play the same way. We have to play as if we have everything to prove and our back's against the wall."

QUOTABLE

• Pederson on Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud, the No. 2 overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft who has 17 touchdown passes with five interceptions this season: "He's playing extremely well. It's very impressive what he's doing for a young player, especially a quarterback, in his first year like this. Teams that want to exotic pressure him, they're giving up the zone on the back end. He's finding that window, the ball's out of his hand. You have to be timely with your pressure. They've done a nice job. They've handled it. He has handled it. You can beat the blitz a lot of ways: Protection, really throw or use your legs. He, they, have been able to do all three."