The current, reigning, and defending Super Bowl champions the New England Patriots will return to NFL preseason betting actions against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Pats were so kind to have the Jags over for a joint practice – kind of like when Aunt March had Jo come over and read to her. Wonder if they flew them in one of their brand new planes?
- Date: Thursday, 10th August
- Time: 7:30 PM
- Venue: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts
Online betting NFL preseason odds:
Jaguars +3 (EV) 40½ (-105)
Patriots -3 (-120) 40½ (-115)
Has it been too long for a McKayla Maroney reference?
Apparently the Jaguars were none too impressed with the Patriots during their joint practice. Or, as cornerback A.J. Bouye put it, “no one was star struck.” Not very buoyant of Bouye, though he did concede the benefits of “going against the best quarterback in the NFL … we know how efficient their offense is. They’re smart with the ball. They don’t cause many turnovers, so even to play tight coverage every down gives us a positive going into the next day.” Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tom Coughlin agreed that working with “Bill Belichick and the world championship team” is a Godfather-esque offer – as in one you can’t refuse.
Historically speaking the Jags have only the slightest idea of what it’s like to beat the Pats, but Coughlin knows all too well what it’s like to defeat them in the grandest of stages – twice, no less. Starting QB Blake Bortles – aka the King of Garbage Time – says the Jags offense has improved. “It was about what we can do, how we react in the situation and how can we continue to get better,” Bortles told the Florida Times-Union about training camp. “There is no doubt there has been some bad stuff that’s happened that we have to fix and continue to work on, but I think if you watched 7-on-7s [Tuesday] or 1-on-1s, there weren’t a whole lot of times we got stopped.”
Too many cooks?
The Patriots need only one Cooks to spoil the Jaguars’ NFL preseason betting broth. Wide receiver Brandin Cooks – whom the Pats acquired from the New Orleans Saints in exchange for a first-round selection and a third-round selection – ran roughshod over the Jags’ defenders over and over again on Monday, including a one-handed touchdown grab. “He’s a great player, great dude and he works super hard,” tight end Rob Gronkowski said of Cooks in a news conference. “Not surprised at all to see him making plays like that (when) you see how hard the kid works.” Speaking of the Gronk, he had a field day as well with six TDs on seven catches on Tuesday’s joint practice.
https://twitter.com/Ryan_Spags/status/894926832566362113
Gronkowski’s surgically-repaired back has not deterred him from fully participating in training camp, though we shouldn’t except to see much of him in the preseason. After all, Coach Belichick is going to want to have him make it to week 1 in one piece. Even without Cooks or Gronk, though, the Pats are the NFL preseason betting favorites on Thursday.