Why the Jaguars' red zone defense is a gift for Bengals star Tee Higgins

The Cincinnati Bengals are looking to bounce back this weekend after their disappointing loss at Pittsburgh last weekend. The Bengals lost 30-27, halting their perfect start to the season and leaving the AFC North all tied at 2-1 heading into Week 4.

Speaking of Week 4, Cincinnati welcomes the Jacksonville Jaguars to Paycor Stadium, in what is set to be one of the games of the week with two former number one overall picks, Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence.

Burrow will hope to rely on his best weapons yet again this weekend, as he did against the Steelers in Week 3. Tee Higgins was arguably the best of Burrow's options last weekend, as the former Clemson Tiger caught six passes for 90 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown grab, which he somehow pulled in despite falling to the floor with coverage from Asante Samuel Jr.

Tee Higgins can torch the Jaguars redzone defense

Higgins already has almost 250 receiving yards this season, and as we know, the former second rounder could be a WR1 for the majority of teams in the NFL. Heading into Week 4, many Jaguars fans may think the focus should be on Chase, considering that he already has three touchdowns this season, but Higgins has more yards, and there is a reason why Tee could surpass Chase in touchdown catches on Sunday.

The Jags' defense is pretty strong; They've allowed the fewest points per game in the NFL this season (12.0), and have weapons, especially in the pass rush, with Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen.

Anthony Campanile's defense plays a modest 15.9% man coverage rate, according to Yahoo Sports; However, when defending in the red zone, the Jaguars play 65% of snaps in man coverage, which is the second-most in the NFL.

But what does this all mean for Higgins? It's very simple. The Jags play the majority of red-zone snaps in man coverage, and Higgins ranks as the best wide receiver against man coverage in the NFL this season.

According to PFF, Higgins has a 95.1 grade against man coverage this season, ranked as number one in the league, ahead of the likes of Garrett Wilson (93.7), Josh Downs (93.2), and Amon-Ra St Brown (92.1).

Considering not only how good a matchup Sunday's game is for Higgins, but also consider that a lot of the time, the Jags will likely double Chase to nullify his threat, Tee should get plenty of one-on-one matchups in the end zone. When I said that he could torch this Jags defense, I meant it.

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