Lawrence powers Jags’ stunning rally
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Trevor Lawrence’s confidence somehow never wavered. Not after the first interception. Or the second. Or the third. Or even the fourth.
The generational quarterback simply delivered a generational comeback.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 draft followed four interceptions with four touchdown passes — one of the most improbable turnarounds in NFL postseason history — and rallied the Jaguars to a 31-30 victory over the Chargers on Saturday night.
Lawrence engineered the winning drive, highlighted by Travis Etienne’s 25-yard run on a fourth-and-1 play, and put the Jaguars in position for Riley Patterson’s 36-yard field goal on the final play. It capped a 27-point comeback, the largest in franchise history and the third largest in playoff history.
“You couldn’t write a crazier script,” Lawrence said. “We said in the locker room that’s kind of how our season’s going. We’re never out of the fight . ... I’m kind of speechless, honestly, just to see what belief can do and to see when a team believes in each other what you can accomplish.”
Patterson’s kick barely stayed inside the right upright and set off a raucous celebration for a franchise that had won a combined four games over the previous two years. The Jaguars won their sixth consecutive game and fifth straight at home — all five in comeback fashion.
Nonetheless, no one could have seen this one coming. Maybe not even Lawrence. But he was the steady hand in charge after a debacle of a first half. He finished 28-of-47 passing for 288 yards, a shocker considering the way he started.
Lawrence was downright dreadful to begin the Jaguars’ first playoff game since losing in the 2017 AFC title game. He became the third quarterback in the Super Bowl era to throw four interceptions in the first half of a playoff game, joining the Lions’ Gary Danielson and Broncos’ Craig Morton.
But he bounced back as well as anyone in NFL history. The Jaguars’ comeback goes down in postseason lore behind only the Bills’ rally on Jan. 3, 1993 (32 points against the Oilers) and Colts’ on Jan. 4, 2014 (28 points against the Chiefs).
“I didn’t have a choice,” Lawrence said. “These guys have sacrificed way too much for me to be the reason we lose an opportunity.”
The Jaguars, who also turned the ball over when a punt hit Chris Claybrook’s helmet, became the first team to win a playoff game with a turnover differential of minus-five or worse. Teams with that turnover deficit had been 0-19 in the Super Bowl era.
“Let me tell you something, man. I think from playing football, watching football, I know a lot of quarterbacks would’ve folded in that situation that he went through,” Jaguars receiver Zay Jones said. “For him just to be as poised and composed as he was, it showed another side of who we have on this team. I mean, that guy right there, standing right there, that’s a special man.”
He wasn’t early. Lawrence misfired on 12 of his first 16 throws and started getting booed long before halftime. His confidence seemed shot. His swagger appeared gone. All the progress he made in his first season with coach Doug Pederson looked like it would be flushed in the team’s finale.
But Lawrence never gave up. He connected with Evan Engram, Marvin Jones, Zay Jones and Christian Kirk for touchdowns that increasingly raised the team’s belief in its quarterback and its comeback.
Lawrence added one of the biggest plays when he jumped for a 2-point conversion with 5:25 to play that made it 30-28 — and put the Jaguars in position to win instead of tie.
The Jaguars defense responded by sacking Justin Herbert and then forcing a punt. Lawrence took over from there, with a significant assist from Etienne — and Peterson’s bold play call.
“I feel like the running back, when it gets to that point of the game, you’re supposed to be the closer,” Etienne said. “Coach believed in me on that fourth-and-1, to give me the ball. I had to make something happen for my teammates.”
Herbert threw for 273 yards and a TD without an interception, but the Chargers offense was largely ineffective after a 62-yard TD drive that made it 24-0 midway through the second quarter. The Chargers finished with 320 yards of offense and 18 first downs, and it produced only three points on four second-half possessions.
“Anytime you’re up 27-7 at halftime and you’ve got four takeaways, and you end up winning the takeaway margin (5-0), you know, it’s it’s gonna be a killer,” Chargers coach Brandon Staley said. “I’m hurting for everybody in that locker room . ... We just didn’t finish the game.”