Last week’s NFL Thursday Night Football saw the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) win their first NFC West division title since 2019 with a 21-13 win over the Seattle Seahawks (7-7) at Lumen Field. Despite a lingering oblique injury, Niners rookie quarterback Brock Purdy improved to 2-0 by connecting on 17 of 26 passes for 217 yards and two touchdowns. His counterpart, veteran Geno Smith, went 31-for-44 for 238 yards and one touchdown but was sacked three times as Seattle lost for the fourth time in five games.
This Thursday’s billing sees the Jacksonville Jaguars (6-8) visiting the New York Jets (7-7) at MetLife Stadium with both teams desperate for a win to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot. According to online sportsbook Sportsbook, this match is a pick’em with the total set at a lowly 37.5 points. Both teams carry an 8-2 O/U record. The total has gone OVER in four of Jacksonville’s last five games.
Thursday night. All white
— Jaguars UK (@JaguarsUK) December 20, 2022
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Thursday Night Football Record: Lawrence vs Wilson
Every week on Thursday, we compile TNF records for all active quarterbacks. We give you how each one performs straight up, against the spread and with the total. Week 16 has the Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence meeting the Jets’ Zach Wilson in a matchup of the first two selections in the 2021 NFL Draft. Wilson, the No. 2 pick, will appear in his first Thursday Night Football game and is starting for the second straight week after being benched four weeks ago when Mike White replaced him. White is dealing with fractured ribs that he suffered in Week 14 against the Buffalo Bills and has yet to be cleared for contact.
| Player | SU | ATS | OU |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Lawrence | 0-1 | 1-0 | 0-1 |
| Zach Wilson | 0 | 0 | 0 |
With Wilson dressing for his first Thursday performance, the 23-year-old will be looking to get his TNF records started in the right direction and redeem himself as a starter before White returns. Wilson started this season with a 5-2 record but was demoted following a 10-3 loss to the New England Patriots in Week 11 when he connected on just nine of 22 pass attempts for a measly 77 yards. He has been trying to prove himself ever since, though it’s been difficult to do so from the bench. Now he has the opportunity to make a favorable impression in the wake of White’s unfortunate injury.
Meanwhile, Lawrence is bidding for his first win on a Thursday night. The 23-year-old, the first overall pick in 2021, has an 0-1 record on TNF, with the loss coming last season in a 24-21 setback to the Cincinnati Bengals. He completed 17 of 24 passes for 204 yards and was sacked once. The Clemson product has been managing a toe injury that is keeping him limited at practice and he is listed as questionable.
| Player | Pass Yards | Pass TDs | INTs | Completion % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Lawrence | 204 | 0 | 0 | 70.8% |
| Zach Wilson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0% |
Statistically, there’s not much to go on here with both young QBs fresh in their professional careers. The Jaguars are on a two-game winning streak and have won three of their last four to sneak within a game of the AFC South-leading Tennessee Titans. Jacksonville is 2-18 SU in its last 20 games on the road but whipped the Titans 36-22 at Tennessee in Week 14, then came back with a stunning 40-34 victory over Dallas in overtime a week ago.
The journey to the playoffs will be more treacherous for the Jets, who have lost three in a row and would need to win their last three matchups to potentially earn their way in as a wild card. New York hasn’t seen the postseason since 2010. The total has gone UNDER in seven of the Jets’ last nine games.
