– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA — Less than one year after being the NFL’s laughingstock, The Jacksonville Jaguars’ road to respectability, even in a league where paupers routinely become princes in short order due to the NFL’s never-ending parity, seemed to be a long and winding one, something that could not be pulled off without an extended rebuilding plan. In stepped Doug Pederson as the team’s new head coach, and paired with generational talent and second-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the expected slow start to the new season turned into one of the better turnarounds in the league this season, with belief becoming a buzzword amongst the up-and-coming, newly-minted division winners of the AFC South.
On Saturday, the Jags entered their first playoff game in five years full of belief, but the electric crowd that packed into TIAA Bank Field saw that belief wane, after the Jacksonville’s second play from scrimmage, with Lawrence’s first interception.
Then after his second interception. And third. And fourth. All before halftime.
What occurred in the final 30 or so minutes after the wretched start could only be described in one word: unbelievable.
Now the Jaguars head into the AFC’s Final Four next weekend, believing why it cannot be them to continue this turnaround that is almost beyond belief.
Lawrence’s four interceptions in the first half turned into four touchdown passes afterwards, and the final drive he led resulted in the game-winning Riley Patterson field goal as time expired as the Jacksonville Jaguars came back from a 27-0 deficit to earn an improbably 31-30 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC Wild Card Playoff game on Saturday night. The win was Jacksonville’s sixth consecutive win overall and their fifth straight at home, with all of the wins at TIAA Bank Field in the come-from-behind variety — two of those coming after the Jaguars came back from 17-point deficits, against Las Vegas and Dallas.
Those victories pale in comparison to the latest performance from the cardiac Jags, who will likely be headed on the road for their AFC Divisional Game next weekend.
Can you believe that, Trevor Lawrence?
“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.”
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