Photo: Douglas P Defelice/Getty Images
For: EFE Posted Jan 15, 2023, 0:36 am EST
After a first half to be forgotten in which they lost 0-27, The Jacksonville Jaguars reacted impressively after the break and signed a huge comeback on Saturday to beat the Los Angeles Chargers (31-30) and go to the divisional round of the American Conference (AFC).
The Jaguars thus sealed the third biggest comeback in NFL playoff history.
The expected duel of quarterbacks between Trevor Lawrence and Justin Herbert was resolved in a vibrant gamewith two very different parts, and in which the Jaguars finally scored the victory with a field goal in the last second by Riley Patterson.
Lawrence had a nightmare start with four interceptions at halftimebut he was resurrected in the second half and finished with 288 yards (28 of 47 passing) and four touchdowns.
Herbert, for his part, lived just the opposite: he lived placidly in the first half, suffered until he lost the game in the second and finished with 273 yards (25 of 43 passing) and a touchdown.
The Chargers’ defense shone in the first two quarterswith three interceptions from a splendid Asante Samuel Jr., but the Angels melted in the second half.
The two franchises faced the game with great enthusiasm: the Jaguars had not played in the playoffs since 2017 and the Chargers had not played since 2018. However, Jacksonville couldn’t have had a more unfortunate start to the game.
On the second play of the first drive, Lawrence was intercepted by Drue Tranquill and Austin Ekeler then took advantage of such a gift to sign his first touchdown when barely 80 seconds had been played (0-7).
And in this way, the misfortunes had only just begun for the locals.
On his second drive, the Jaguars risked on fourth-and-seven but Lawrence suffered another interception, this time by Samuel Jr. Facing Lawrence’s enormous doubts, Herbert started the night with aplomb and directed his team firmly.
A field goal extended the lead of the Chargers (0-10), which once again pierced Lawrence’s morale with a third interception, the second courtesy of Samuel Jr.
No quarterback in playoff history had recorded three interceptions in the first quarter.
In addition, Ekeler added his second score and the Chargers closed their magnificent first quarter with a resounding 0-17.
With no reaction in the second quarter, Lawrence suffered his fourth interception of the game (the third by Samuel Jr.), the Chargers recovered a ball after a punt and added salt to the Jaguars’ wound with a Gerald Everett touchdown and a new field goal (0-27).
However, a ray of hope appeared at the break in Jacksonville thanks to a touchdown run by Evan Engram (7-27). The walk through the locker room calmed down Lawrence and the Jaguars.
It also helped them that their longest drive of the game (14 plays and 89 yards) ended in a score by Marvin Jones to reduce the gap (14-27).
With an evident improvement in defense and greater energy, the Jaguars went one step further with a Zay Jones touchdown after Lawrence perfectly read a serious mistake behind the Chargers.
With the score at 20-30 to start the fourth period, Cameron Dicker missed a field goal from the 40-yard line for the Angelenos and the Jaguars they dreamed of an epic comeback.
A score from Christian Kirk and a two-point conversion from Lawrence left them on the verge of glory (28-30), a milestone that Patterson capped with an already unforgettable field goal in Jacksonville.
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