NFL burns Jaguars with scheduling of win-and-in season finale

The NFL did not make things easy on the Jaguars.

The league announced on Sunday evening that they flexed the Jaguars-Titans game to Saturday night. The winner of that game will be the AFC South champion and claim the No. 4 seed in the AFC playoffs.

The Titans lost 27-13 on Thursday night to the Cowboys. With it already known that the Week 18 game in Jacksonville would decide the division, Tennessee rested a handful of starters — including star running back Derrick Henry — for the game against Dallas.

The Jaguars opted to play their starters for Sunday’s game against the Texans — a 31-3 rout of the NFL’s worst team. The NFL could have opted to put the game on Sunday to allow the Jaguars a full week of rest for the crucial matchup.

“I would love to play Sunday, obviously, to have these next couple of days,” Jaguars coach Doug Pederson said after the win in Houston before the NFL’s decision.

“But we’ll play when they ask us or tell us to play, and our guys will be ready to go. If I could pick, I would pick Sunday.”

There was a thought, given the win-and-in nature of the game, that the NFL would put the game on Sunday night. Instead, that primetime slot remains an unknown as the league has not announced what game it will flex there, yet.

The Packers-Lions matchup in Green Bay is a possibility. The Packers will earn a playoff spot with a victory. The Lions could also have a win-and-in scenario if the Seahawks lose to the Rams that day.

The Titans have a decision to make at quarterback after starting Joshua Dobbs over struggling rookie Malik Willis against the Cowboys. Dobbs, who was signed off the Lions practice squad in early December, completed 20 of 39 passes for 212 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Veteran Ryan Tannehill is out for season after undergoing ankle surgery.

The Jaguars have won four straight to put themselves in position to win the division in Pederson’s first season.