Jacksonville Jaguars star Trevor Lawrence admitted he was left ‘speechless’ after his team overcame a 27-point deficit to stun the Los Angeles Chargers in the NFL playoffs.
On Saturday in the Wild Card round, Jaguars star quarterback Trevor Lawrence threw four interceptions in the first half of his playoff debut before settling down as he ultimately led Jacksonville to an incredible 31-30 victory. Lawrence threw for 288 yards in total, with four touchdowns to go with his four picks.
In the second half, Lawrence showed why he was considered a generational prospect coming out of college. Jacksonville regrouped and stormed back to win with a last-gasp field goal by Riley Patterson as time expired.
The 23-year-old quarterback - selected first in the 2021 NFL Draft - was poor to start the game, which was Jacksonville’s first playoff contest since losing the 2017 AFC title game. Moments after engineering the winning drive, Lawrence could barely contain his emotions.
“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.”
In completing their remarkable turnaround, the Jaguars became the first team in the Super Bowl era to win a playoff game with a turnover differential of minus-5 or worse. Teams with that margin had been 0-19 but Lawrence never wavered despite his woeful start.
In front of a raucous crowd at TIAA Bank Field, Lawrence was intercepted on the second play of the game. Linebacker Drue Tranquill made the play, with running back Austin Ekeler scoring a 13-yard touchdown shortly after.
Later in the first quarter, Samuel broke up a deep pass attempt before intercepting Lawrence once again. Ekeler added another touchdown on a six-yard rushing touchdown two plays later to make the score 17-0.
Ultimately, Lawrence initially struggled to deal with the Chargers defence, which dominated with zone coverage while Samuel scored a hat-trick of interceptions on a playoff debut to remember - but that quickly turned as Lawrence found his rhythm.
Down 27-0 at one point, the Chargers were on track for a dominant win but the touchdown thrown by Lawrence appeared to inspire his Jaguars. They fought back and head coach Doug Peterson - who led the Jaguars to the AFC South title in his first season - boldly went for two after a penalty against Joey Bosa, and Lawrence converted.
This meant the Jags simply needed a field goal to win the game when they got possession back with a few minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. Running back Travis Etienne made a number of key plays - including an outside run on fourth down to set up the win through Patterson’s 36-yard kick.
The Jags will continue their NFL postseason run when they contest the Division Round next weekend.
