JACKSONVILLE – We're not at must-win time. Not yet, anyway.

But the Jaguars without question are at the point in the 2025 regular season where games really matter – and Sunday’s road game against the Las Vegas Raiders really matters for some really, really meaningful reasons.

The Jaguars, winners of three consecutive games early in the season to move to the top of the AFC, need to win to regain momentum after a two-game losing streak entering this past week's Week 8 bye.

They need to win to at least maintain their status just outside the top seven teams in the AFC.

They're also still within range of the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South – but with the Colts playing as well as any team in the NFL, the Jaguars need to win to stay within range of a team that enters Week 9 with a two-and-a-half game lead in the division.

Those are big reasons Sunday matters, but perhaps the biggest reason is the Jaguars simply need to play well – something they did consistently while winning four of their first five games but something they didn't do in their last two games.

This remains a confident team and it remains, as Head Coach Liam Coen has said in recent weeks, a team with "everything in front of them." But that's only true if the Jaguars start winning again, something they can do in Nevada Sunday.

Here are 10 things the Jaguars must do to do that:

1. Run. The Jaguars haven't done this well enough in recent games. The effect on the offense has been evident. This offense must run well to be productive.
2. Get physical. The Jaguars for the most part were the more physical team in their first five games, after which they were 4-1 and tied for the best record in the AFC. They have not been the more physical team in their last two games. They are now 4-3.
3. Get BTJ going – and others. This entry was going to be "Get Travis Hunter going," but Coen on Friday ruled the rookie wide receiver/defensive back out with a knee injury sustained in practice Thursday. Without Hunter, the Jaguars need better performances from second-year veteran Brian Thomas Jr. than they have received this season. Wide receiver Parker Washington and Dyami Brown must produce, too.
4. Catch. The. Ball. This continues to be an issue for the Jaguars, who lead the NFL in drops by a wide margin. It's close to defining the season. Dropped passes end drives, and possessions are valuable. The Jaguars must catch the ball.
5. Avoid the avoidables. Self-inflicted mistakes such as alignment errors, penalties, dropped passes and avoidable sacks – to name a few – hampered the Jaguars in recent games, particularly offensively. How good are the Jaguars? How far can this team go? There's no way to find out until they stop beating themselves.
6. Keep it manageable. The Jaguars' offense has faced too many long down-and-distances situations in recent weeks. This ties in with avoiding avoidable mistakes, because pre-snap penalties and avoidable sacks – to name two issues – have kept the offense playing in difficult situations. Whatever the tie-in, this Jaguars offense isn't good enough to consistently convert long yardages. Few NFL offenses are that good.
7. Turn the ball over. The Jaguars through five games led the NFL in takeaways with 14. They haven't had one in the last two games and lost both games. There's some luck involved in takeaways. It's also key to stop the run so you can get opposing offenses in must-throw situations. However the Jaguars make them happen, they must get back to taking the ball away.
8. Contain Bowers. Raiders second-year tight end Brock Bowers is expected to play Sunday after missing three games with a knee injury. His return makes this a different Raiders offense than the one that has struggled without him. He can frustrate defenses with his ability to convert third-and-medium situations.
9. Get Crosby blocked. Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby is one of the NFL's best defensive ends. He's a disruptive force. The Jaguars must keep him from dominating Sunday.
10. Hit it big. The Jaguars have speed at the skill positions. They haven't yet been able to turn that speed into explosive plays – and if there has been one element missing from this offense this season, it has been that. It's too hard for offenses to use double-digit possessions to drive the length of the field. Big plays can come from the receivers. Or the running backs. Whatever the source, the Jaguars need explosion. The sooner the better.