The Denver Broncos and Jacksonville Jaguars kick off the 2010 season on Sunday in a rare game where the road team will play a major role in the attendance.  The Jaguars sold out only one home game last season, prompting numerous blackouts for local fans who wanted to watch their team on television.  Enter rookie sensation Tim Tebow, who is a Jacksonville native but was drafted by the Broncos in the first round of this year’s NFL draft.

This type of emotional charge could go obviously either way, although the Jaguars remain small favorites at -3 on the NFL odds.  Jacksonville head coach Jack Del Rio insists that his team will be fired up to beat Denver and take advantage of the big crowd that comes out to pay homage to Tebow.

Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew was very vocal in the offseason about his team not getting the respect it deserves despite falling short of expectations with a 7-9 record last year.  Jones-Drew and his teammates will certainly get an excellent opportunity here to prove themselves as they open the season in front of what could be the most fans in attendance at EverBank Field this year thanks mostly to Tebow, who may not even take a snap.

Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels has not tipped his hand regarding Tebow’s status in what could be the first game of his NFL career if he does in fact get under center against Jacksonville.  What we do know is that Denver will be starting Kyle Orton at quarterback following what was the best statistical year of his career despite the face that the team lost eight of 10 games down the stretch following a surprising 6-0 start.  Tebow could come into the game on running plays in some variation of the Wildcat formation or to simply mix things up in place of Orton.

The Jaguars will be relying on the legs of Jones-Drew, who rushed for 1,391 yards and scored 16 total touchdowns in his first full year as the featured back.  The Broncos did not fare well against the run defensively last year, giving up 128.7 yards per game to rank 26th in the league.  Denver will also be without its top pass rusher, as linebacker Elvis Dumervil was placed on injured reserve last Saturday with a torn pectoral muscle.

Jacksonville quarterback David Garrard will have to deal with one of the NFL’s top secondaries though featuring All-Pro cornerback Champ Bailey.  The Broncos were third in pass defense last season, allowing just 186.3 yards per game.  Meanwhile, look for Orton – and possibly Tebow – to attack the Jaguars through the air since they surrendered 235.9 passing yards per game a year ago.  Jacksonville ranked 24th in scoring defense last year, giving up 23.8 points per game.

Get Maddux’s NFL predictions for Sunday and start your season off on a winning note!