Jaguars vs Colts: 3 Matchups to Watch

9/29/2016

The Jaguars and the Colts are set to do battle in London this Sunday. Here's the 3 most important matchups to keep an eye on.
By Jordan de Lugo - @jordandelugo

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Jalen Ramsey vs T.Y. Hilton

Ramsey vs Hilton is one of the more intriguing matchups we've had all season. Ramsey has all the tools; strength, physicality, speed, quickness, and leaping ability. Hilton has several tools, the most important of which is his speed, but he also boasts excellent route running ability, hands, and instant change of direction. While this is the first time these two will face off, it won't be the last. This will certainly not be an exclusive matchup -- T.Y. Hilton will move all over the field and the Jaguars will not have Ramsey following the Colts speedy WR, but they will matchup through out the contest and whichever player wins when they do match up will greatly improve their teams chances of winning. Hilton's biggest asset is his speed. Will Ramsey be able to get him off his line early in routes? If Ramsey can't disturb the flow of Hilton's routes, will Ramsey be able to keep up with Hilton? We'll find out which guy is up to the task on Sunday morning.

Erik Walden vs Kelvin Beachum

Erick Walden has already recorded 3 sacks and 2 forced fumbles in 2016. The man tasked with trying to slow Walden down will be Kelvin Beachum. Beachum is just returning from NFL concussion protocol and will have little time to prepare for Walden who is off to the best start of his career. Beachum hasn't been to shabby himself for the Jaguars. Despite missing the Jaguars third contest of the season, Beachum has brought some stability and consistency to the Jaguars left tackle position, a position that has been lacking for years. Despite Beachum's efforts the Jaguars have already given up 9 sacks in 2016. Certainly not all of these sacks can be blamed on the offensive line, but a good portion of them can be. The Jaguars need to keep Bortles relatively clean this week in order to give the third year QB a shot to get back on track following perhaps the worst performance of his young career. In 2014, the last time these two faced off, Beachum held Walden sackless and helped the Steelers take down the Colts 51-34.

Andrew Luck vs Tashaun Gipson

Stopping Andrew Luck was perhaps the biggest reason the Jaguars felt they needed a ball hawking centerfielder at free safety, which is exactly what they got this offseason when they signed Tashaun Gipson. Andrew Luck throws a great deep ball and has the weapons to compliment his arm. Tashaun Gipson will be tasked with trying to slow down the big plays. If he can outsmart Luck on some plays then he might be able to take advantage of Luck's penchant for taking risks down field. Gipson will have to play one of the smartest games of his career in order to keep the Jaguars back line from giving up big plays and he'll need to make some big plays of his own to keep the Jaguars from falling to 0-4. Gipson has never had the opportunity to take on Andrew Luck and the Colts, but he'll be ready to take on one of the games bright young stars and maybe with a little help from the rest of the Jaguars DBs Gipson can get another interception late in the game like he did last week -- Hopefully this time, for the Jaguars sake, the offense doesn't choke the game away, time and time again.

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