Jaguars vs. Falcons predictions: How did the experts see this week's game?

The Jacksonville Jaguars are hopeful to get back toward a positive finish to the season.

Both the Jags (2-8) and their opponents, the Atlanta Falcons (4-6) have had rough patches of late — the Jaguars having lost two straight, the Falcons three of their last four.

Trevor Lawrence's last three games — the two losses and the 9-6 win over Buffalo — haven't seen him get more than 200 yards passing, while he's only hit the 300-yard plateau twice. The Jaguars are looking to give him more time in the pocket this week.

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The Falcons are also looking to get their offense untracked. In the three most recent losses, Atlanta scored a total of 16 points, including none last week in a 25-0 blanking against New England. Similar to Lawrence, Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan has been quiet, staying under 200 yards in each defeat.

What did our staff say?: Week 12 staff predictions: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Atlanta Falcons

Watch the game: How to watch Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Atlanta Falcons on TV, live stream

How can they win?: Jaguars vs. Falcons: Keys to victory

NFL reporters and analysts weigh in with their picks:

Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: Falcons, 20-17

The Falcons are a hard team to read from week to week but they are taking a short road trip to Jacksonville on a long week when they will be closer to full strength offensively. Matt Ryan will rebound on the road with help from his diverse weapons while Trevor Lawrence will remain in a funk as his team has no idea how to use his receiving support.

Brent Sobleski, Bleacher Report: Falcons, 26-23

At this point, the idea of throwing a dart to pick between the Falcons and Jaguars seems like a better idea than trying to rationalize which one of these flailing teams will play better. In this case, Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan and head coach Arthur Smith are more trustworthy than Jaguars rookie Trevor Lawrence and Urban Meyer.

Mike Florio, Pro Football Talk: Falcons, 21-13

The Falcons are good enough to beat a bad team.

Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Jaguars, 14-13

In their past two games, the Falcons have been outscored 68-3, curious for a team that never scored fewer than 20 points in their previous eight games. The Jaguars aren’t exactly an offensive machine, either, averaging just 10.7 points in their past four games.

Gregg Rosenthal, NFL.com: Falcons, 26-21

I do not want to watch this Falcons offense anymore without Cordarrelle Patterson, and his status is up in the air again this week. The Jaguars' offense is an even tougher slog at the moment. They're averaging 10.8 points per game in the four contests since their bye week, with much of the scoring coming in garbage time. The Falcons' defense should provide some relief, but they are looking at Trevor Lawrence the same way.

Bill Bender, Sporting News: Falcons, 21-17

The Falcons had some extra time to figure out what was an inept offense in losses to the Patriots and Cowboys. The Jaguars have had a few surprising wins, but they have yet to score more than 19 points in a home game. Georgia fans finally get to celebrate a victory against Urban Meyer.

Michael David Smith, Pro Football Talk: Falcons, 12-9

Urban Meyer has not made much progress on the Jaguars’ rebuild. This is likely to be an ugly game.

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: Jaguars, 9-6

The Falcons have lost two straight games, but they remain alive in the playoff chase. Jacksonville looked terrible last week in losing to the 49ers, but the Falcons aren't nearly as physical as the 49ers. The Jaguars will stay in this game behind their defense. It's not a pretty game, but the Jaguars pull off the upset.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: NFL Week 12 picks, predictions: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Atlanta Falcons