Preseason schedule notes
The Jaguars open the preseason at New England on Thursday, August 11 at 7:30 p.m., the third consecutive year the club will open the preseason on the road. The Jaguars will host Atlanta on Friday, August 19 in a game nationally televised on FOX. The team will round out the schedule by playing at Buffalo on Saturday, August 27 at 7:00 p.m. followed by a home game against the St. Louis Rams on Thursday, September 1 at 7:30 p.m. It marks the first-ever preseason game for the Jaguars against the Bills.
Prime time games
The Jaguars will play in three nationally televised regular season games in 2011 including two at EverBank Field. The Jaguars will host two Monday night games, against Baltimore (Oct. 24) and San Diego (Dec. 5), for only the third time in franchise history (1998, 2006). It marks the 10th time in franchise history the Jaguars will host a Monday Night Football game, the fifth time in the last six seasons. The Jaguars have played in 13 Monday night games and own a 7-6 mark including a 2-3 mark under head coach Jack Del Rio.
The Jaguars have played in 28 nationally televised prime time games in their 16 seasons, at least one each season, with a record of 13-15 including a 4-7 mark under head coach Jack Del Rio.
Competitive schedule
The Jaguars' 2011 schedule features six playoff teams from a year ago and seven games against playoff teams on the schedule – the Colts twice (Nov. 13, Jan. 1), as well as the Ravens (Oct. 24), Saints (Oct. 2), Steelers (Oct. 16), Falcons (Dec. 15) and Jets (Sept. 18). The Jaguars will play 11 games against teams that finished .500 or better in 2010.
Super Bowl participants
The Jaguars will face Super Bowl runner-up Pittsburgh on Sunday, October 16. It marks the 12th time in franchise history the club will play a participant from the previous Super Bowl. The Jaguars have faced six Super Bowl defending champions including the Steelers in 2006.
Streak of non-division games
After opening the season against Tennessee, the Jaguars play six straight games outside of the division. The Jaguars return to division play on Sunday, October 20 when they visit Houston.
Home sweet home
The Jaguars will open the regular season at home for the second consecutive season and the 10th time in club history. The Jaguars and Titans are meeting on Kickoff Weekend for the third time in the last five seasons. The Jaguars own a 10-6 mark (.625 winning percentage) in opening day games including a 24-17 win against Denver in 2010.
Winning on the road is key
The Jaguars will be able to measure their success by how well they play on the road early and late in the season. Two of the first three games (at New York Jets, at Carolina) and two of the last three games (at Atlanta, at Tennessee) will be played on the road.
Thursday night game
The Jaguars travel to Atlanta on Thursday, December 15 for a game nationally televised on NFL Network. It marks only the fifth Thursday night game in franchise history, the third in the last four seasons, and the first road Thursday night game in team history.
Jaguars to battle NFC South opponents
The Jaguars will face all four NFC South teams in 2011 for the third time in franchise history. Tampa Bay was a part of the NFC Central until realignment in 2002.
The Jaguars own a winning record over three of the four teams and an 11-5 mark overall including a 5-3 record under head coach Jack Del Rio. The club last faced the NFC South in 2007 and finished 3-1 with wins over Atlanta, Carolina and Tampa Bay. The Saints defeated the Jaguars 41-24 at the Louisiana Superdome.
The Jaguars will host New Orleans (Oct. 2) and Tampa Bay (Dec. 11) and own a combined 4-0 mark at home against those teams. The Jaguars will travel to Atlanta (Dec. 15) and Carolina (Sept. 25).
Grass vs. turf in 2011
The Jaguars will play 15 of their 20 games including the preseason on grass. The only games to be played on artificial turf will be in the preseason at New England and at Buffalo, and during the regular season at Atlanta, New York Jets and Indianapolis.
Playing under a dome
The Jaguars will visit the Georgia Dome to battle the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday, December 15, their only game in a domed stadium in 2011. The Jaguars have played a game in a domed stadium 13 of the previous 16 seasons in team history. The only seasons the team did not play in a domed stadium were 1997, 2009 and 2010. Houston and Indianapolis have retractable roofs.
Old AFC Central foes collide again
The Jaguars will battle their former AFC Central foes in 2011. The Jaguars were members of the AFC Central from 1995-2001 with Baltimore, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Houston, Tennessee and Pittsburgh. The Jaguars, winners of two AFC Central titles, last played each former division rival in 2008 and will meet them again in 2011.
The Jaguars have a 40-26 record against all four teams currently in the AFC North. The Jaguars have a winning record against each team: Cincinnati (11-6), Cleveland (9-4), Baltimore (9-7) and Pittsburgh (11-9). The Jaguars are 7-8 against AFC North opponents under head coach Jack Del Rio.
The Jaguars and Browns will play for the fourth consecutive season as they meet on Sunday, November 20 at Cleveland. The Jaguars hosted the Browns in 2008 and 2010, both wins. The Jaguars lost in Cleveland for the first time in the 2009 season finale. The Jaguars are 5-1 in games at Cleveland and won the first six overall meetings against the Browns from 1995 to 2000 including three road wins.
Return to Steel City
The Jaguars will return to the site of their last playoff win as they visit Pittsburgh on Sunday, October 16. The Jaguars have won four of the last five games and three straight at Heinz Field against the Steelers, including a 31-29 playoff victory on January 5, 2008. In the 2007 season the Jaguars became the first visiting team to win in Pittsburgh twice in the same season.
Preseason scouting report
The Jaguars and Falcons should have a good feel for each other when they meet in the regular season on Thursday, December 15 at the Georgia Dome. The teams will battle in the preseason at EverBank Field on Friday, August 19. Both games will be nationally televised with FOX carrying the preseason game and NFL Network airing the regular season matchup.
No West coast trips
The Jaguars will not play a game on the west coast in 2011 and only have two games outside the Eastern time zone (at Houston, at Tennessee). It marks the first time since 2006 the club will not play a game west of the Rockies.
The Jaguars will travel 5,339 miles to their eight regular season road games. The longest trip is to New York (950) followed by Cleveland (900) and Houston (870). The Jaguars' longest road trips will come in the preseason at New England (966) and Buffalo (1,042).
Clash of the Titans
The Jaguars will play their 34th and 35th games against the Tennessee Titans (including playoffs) at home on September 11 and on the road on December 24, the most against any NFL team. The Titans own a 19-14 edge in the series. The teams have split the season series in four of the last five seasons including the last two seasons.
Jaguars conclude season with two division games
In 2010 the NFL placed an emphasis on scheduling divisional games late in the season and this was accomplished again this season. The Jaguars conclude the regular season with AFC South games at Tennessee on December 24 and at home against Indianapolis on January 1.
For the second consecutive season, the Jaguars have only two division games in the first half of the season with Tennessee on September 11 and at Houston on October 30.
Prelude to the postseason?
The Jaguars will conclude the regular season at home for the first time since 2005 and only the sixth time overall as they host Indianapolis on Sunday, January 1. The Jaguars are 5-0 in games played at home in the final week of the regular season including a 40-13 win against Tennessee in 2005.
Another trip to New York
The Jaguars visit the New York Jets in the second week of the season on Sunday, September 18. The Jaguars have played (including playoffs) at the stadium of a New York-based team in 13 of the previous 16 seasons (2001, 2007, 2008). The Jaguars edged the Jets, 24-22, in 2009 at the old Giants Stadium. The Jaguars fell to the New York Giants, 24-20, in 2010 in their first game at the New Meadowlands Stadium.
Florida Sunshine
The Jaguars have played 35 games in 16 seasons with the kickoff temperature at 81 degrees or higher, the fourth-most in the NFL, and they have taken advantage of the climate. The Jaguars are fourth in the NFL with a .686 winning percentage (24-11) in games played with temperatures at 81 degrees or above in the past 16 seasons including a 9-8 mark the last eight seasons.
The Jaguars have had four games with temperature at kickoff of 88 degrees or higher, with two on the road and two at home. The club had two games in 2010 with temperatures above 80 degrees. Temperature at kickoff against Denver on Kickoff Weekend was 90 degrees (98-degree heat index), the warmest temperature for kickoff in franchise history at EverBank Field. The temperature at the start of the second half was 93 degrees with a heat index of 105.
