Atlanta Falcons vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: What's the Game Plan for the Jaguars?

The Jacksonville Jaguars (5-8) have a major chance to continue staking a legitimate claim for the playoffs this weekend, and beating the Atlanta Falcons (6-7) would be a crucial victory in the race for the AFC South.

While the Indianapolis Colts play the Houston Texans, the Jaguars can keep up in the race with a win, but they will fall two games behind the victor of that battle with a loss. So this is another game where the Jaguars need to win to keep their playoff chances alive.

The Falcons have lost their previous six games, but they have proved they can play with any team and have plenty of ability on both sides of the ball. Going into this game with a lack of respect for the opponent will doom the Jaguars.

Jacksonville will be up for this, but they will need to be able to handle adversity. They did a good job overcoming mistakes this past Sunday in their win over the Colts, but they must show they can consistently perform.

Offensive Game Plan

The Jaguars will look to quarterback Blake Bortles to continue his impressive scoring ways, as seen in the table below. He's improved in scoring opportunities, and it's fair to say his overall consistency is getting better despite his difficult first half last Sunday.

	Yards	Touchdowns	Interceptions	Completion Percentage	Rating
Week 12	329	2	1	61.2	86.2
Week 13	322	5	0	66.7	134.5
Week 14	250	3	0	53.3	114.6
Total	901	10	1	60.4	118.7

The likely absence of rookie running back T.J. Yeldon, as seen in the official injury report, will hurt Jacksonville's offense, but running back Denard Robinson stepped in well last week and should see a decent-sized workload against the Falcons.

Creating space for Robinson to make his quick cuts and show off his bursts of speed will be imperative. Drawing attention away from Bortles and the pass will be the best way to set up the long throws and big plays Bortles likes to create.

As usual, Bortles will look to wide receivers Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns as his primary targets. Robinson's 12 TDs on the year will likely have the Falcons devoting a lot of manpower to guarding him, which should allow Hurns some opportunities.

It's also crucial to attack the Falcons with tight end Julius Thomas. The Falcons' defense has lain down as of late, and Thomas is a guy that can be the backbreaking factor in a game. So don't be surprised if he is targeted often and early.

Stephen B. Morton/Associated Press

Defensive Game Plan

On defense, the Jaguars will likely look to execute a similar game plan to the one they used against the Colts: conservative, limiting play-calling on first and second downs but blitzing on third down to disrupt Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan.

Ryan will be looking toward wide receiver Julio Jones a lot on Sunday, so it'll be important for corner Davon House to hold his ground, and at the very least, contain Jones throughout the game.

The Jaguars can perform well enough as a unit, but they need more impactful individual plays. Whether or not defensive end Andre Branch can put together another chaotic day or linebacker Telvin Smith can continue to be electric on the field are major questions.

Atlanta's Devonta Freeman has been one of the most impressive young running backs in the league, but the Jaguars have been good against the run this season. Limiting him to small gains will turn the Falcons into a more one-dimensional offense, and then it becomes a matter of getting to Ryan and shutting down Jones.

Sure, Falcons wide receiver Roddy White will need to be monitored, but his offensive impact has been considerably lower this year than in past years. If the Jaguars take care of business where they should, the offense's job will be much easier.

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All stats provided by ESPN.com unless otherwise stated.

Evan Reier is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report covering the Jacksonville Jaguars. Follow Evan on Twitter @evanreier.