Vincent Frank
One of the NFL Week 10 headliners includes the San Francisco 49ers heading to Duval to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars.
For some, this could be seen as a potential under-the-radar Super Bowl preview. Jacksonville comes out of its bye at 6-2 and having won five consecutive after a 1-2 start to the season. San Francisco is also coming out of its bye. Though, Kyle Shanahan’s squad is in the midst of an ugly three-game losing streak after winning five consecutive to open the season.
There are a lot of different things to look at in this game. We’ll touch on a few of them below in providing four bold predictions for what promises to be an interesting matchup.
Related: NFL Week 10 expert predictions
San Francisco 49ers at Jacksonville Jaguars game info
- Kickoff: 1:00 PM EST
- TV: FOX
- Line: San Francisco 49ers (-3.0)
- Over/Under: 46.0 total points
Let’s dive into our bold predictions for the San Francisco 49ers and Jacksonville Jaguars clash.
Chase Young records multiple sacks in San Francisco 49ers debut
Young was acquired from the Washington Commanders ahead of the Oct. 31 NFL trade deadline for a mere late third-round selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. The former No. 2 pick now heads to San Francisco feeling a bit better about his situation after a drama-filled tenure in Washington.
“Just stepping in here for today. Got in here last week. Just the culture. The vibe. It’s a lot different,” Young told reporters during his intro presser with the 49ers. “I definitely know I am in the building with winners.”
For the 24-year-old impending free agent, this is not only a chance to team up with former Ohio State star Nick Bosa again. Rather, it gives him an opportunity to prove his worth heading into the open market this coming March. That’s obviously going to be a driving force for Young in San Francisco.
Jacksonville’s offensive line has done a good job protecting Trevor Lawrence this season (19 sacks in eight games). Even then, the idea of Young teaming up with the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year on San Francisco’s offensive line is going to be all sorts of fun. He’ll get the start out of the gate and will be given ample opportunity to improve off a solid start to the season in Washington (9 QB hits, 6 tackles for loss, 5 sacks).
Related: Bold predictions for Cleveland Browns at Baltimore Ravens
Travis Etienne paces the Jacksonville Jaguars with 150 rushing yards
Previously one of the most-stout units in the NFL against the run, San Francisco has struggled in this regard during its three-game losing streak. The team has given up a total of 368 rushing yards during that span. Joe Mixon went for 110 total yards and a score in the Cincinnati Bengals’ Week 8 win over San Francsico.
Adding Young to the mix is great from a pass-rush perspective, but we have no idea how he’s going to translate into stopping the run. We’re going to see more packages with Young and Bosa playing together and more-stout run defenders out of the game. That’ll have an impact against the run.
As for Jacksonville, Etienne was on an absolute roll ahead of its Week 9 bye. We’re talking about a youngster who has gone for nearly 500 total yards and seven touchdowns over the past four games. Look for Etienne to eat big time against San Francisco’s suddenly questionable run defense.
Jaguars hold Christian McCaffrey in check
This isn’t something that we have said much since McCaffrey joined San Francisco in a trade a year ago last months. In 19 career games with the 49ers, McCaffrey has gone off to the tune of 2,154 total yards and 23 touchdowns. He’s on a record touchdown run and has been among the most-dominant skill-position players in the game.
Look for that to change against Jacksonsville come Sunday.
We expect the Jaguars’ defense to stack the box against McCaffrey while daring young quarterback Brock Purdy to beat this unit over the top. Purdy has struggled recently, throwing five touchdowns during the 49ers’ three-game losing streak. It’s a better bet to make him win the game than McCaffrey. It also must be noted that Jacksonville is giving up an average of 3.8 yards per rush on the season.
Brock Purdy, Trevor Lawrence go tit-for-tat
We’re boldly predicting that San Francisco will hold a three-point lead within the final five minutes of the game. Lawrence will then lead the Jaguars down the field on a 70-plus yard touchdown drive, culminating in a score to Calvin Ridley to put Jacksonville up by four.
That’s when Purdy will get his chance to turn around a certain late-game narrative. He was unable to lead San Francisco back from late-game deficits against the Cleveland Browns and Minnesota Vikings before throwing two fourth-quarter picks back in Week 8 against the Bengals.
This time, Purdy will avoid that dreaded mistake. Instead, he’ll hit Deebo Samuel on a touchdown with mere seconds remaining to send the 49ers to a dramatic late-game win in a well-played game between the two teams.
- Prediction: San Francisco 49ers 27, Jacksonville Jaguars 24
