Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Josh Allen isn't treating their home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs like any other game. This one is personal for him.
Allen and the Jaguars turned things around in Doug Pederson's first year as head coach in 2022. Jacksonville won nine games and ended a four-year playoff drought. They regrouped one year after the Urban Meyer fiasco. With Meyer calling the shots, the Jaguars won just three games in the 2021 NFL season.
Alas, Patrick Mahomes' Kansas City Chiefs eliminated the Jaguars with a 27-20 win in the 2022 AFC Divisional Round. The Chiefs went on to win their second Super Bowl title in four years.
As for Josh Allen and the Jaguars, they flew back to Jacksonville knowing they have a bright future with Pederson at the helm. Allen noticed the remarkable change in the locker room atmosphere when Pederson took over.
'It's personal for me': Jaguars' Josh Allen hopes to flip script against Chiefs this week https://t.co/TU7QJUsL9h
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Nonetheless, the sting of the loss to the Chiefs still haunts Allen. He will treat their Week 2 matchup against Kansas City like a playoff game, per the Jacksonville Florida Times-Union's Demetrius Harvey.
“It's a little personal for me because the last two times we played them last year, I wasn't at my best,” Allen said.
“For me, it's personal, but at the end of the day, I got a job to do and for me to be where I need to be, I also need to know what I'm doing out there,” Allen added.
The Jaguars started the 2023 NFL season on a high note after they beat the Indianapolis Colts 31-21 on Sunday. However, Josh Allen knows the Chiefs, the defending Super Bowl champions, will be a tall order. Can Allen and the Jaguars pull of the upset on Sunday? Stay tuned.