The Jacksonville Jaguars have the best point differential in the NFL and are flying high atop the AFC South. And now, their defense just got a lot better. On Monday morning, the Jaguars acquired safety Jessie Bates III from the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for two draft picks — a 2027 second-round pick and a 2028 fifth-rounder — according to ESPN. Bates is widely regarded as one of the best safeties in the NFL. A three-time second-team All-Pro selection, he is in the final season of a four-year contract worth $64 that he signed with Atlanta back in March 2023. The 29-year-old will be a sought-after commodity in free agency this offseason, assuming he makes it to the open market. The Jaguars defense suffered a blow last week with the loss of defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton for the rest of the season due to a torn quadriceps. The assumption was that if Jacksonville was active at the deadline, it would be to replace him. That could still happen ahead of Tuesday afternoon, but the Jags’ first move was to bolster the secondary. The Jaguars have won five of their last six games, the last two of which were both by at least three possessions. After beating the Colts 42-7, the Jags followed that up by taking care of business last Thursday with a 33-10 win over the Ravens, who were down to their third-string quarterback. Jacksonville is three games ahead of the Texans in the AFC South and enters Monday night’s Bills-Vikings game as the No. 3 seed in the AFC. Despite trading one of their best players, the Falcons are still very much in the race for the AFC South. Atlanta, sitting at 3-6, is just one-half game behind the Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints, who are tied for first place at 3-5. Carolina is in first because it has a 1-1 record in divisional play compared to the Saints’ 0-1 mark. After starting 2-2, the Falcons have lost four of their last five games. After getting shut out by the Buccaneers in Week 8, the Falcons convincingly lost to the Bengals in Madrid on Sunday.
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