The Jacksonville Jaguars, on Sunday, extended their decade long streak of home victories over the Indianapolis Colts to eleven consecutive games with a 36 to 19 EverBank Stadium victory over Indianapolis. The weather was rainy, the stadium was packed, and the team came ready to take control of the AFC South. As the team welcomed back many familiar faces for Legends Weekend, former Jaguars defensive tackle Malik Jackson completed the first “Duuuval” for the home team.
Live blog:
Catch up on all the big plays and best moments from tonight’s game in our live blog!
Pregame Notes:
On Friday, Jacksonville officially declared both starting left tackle Walker Little and safety Andrew (Dewey) Wingard inactive for Sunday’s matchup due to concussions. Additionally, WR Parker Washington was later ruled out after suffering a hip injury in week 13. Multiple Jaguars returned from injury for Jacksonville, as Eric Murray was activated from IR after a five-game absence due to a neck injury. OL Patrick Mekari (concussion), Chuma Edoga (calf), and DE Travon Walker (knee) all returned to the playing field after missing Week 13 due to injury. DT Arik Armstead (hand) was also active, wearing a cast over his injured hand.
The following Jacksonville players left Sunday’s game due to injury:
- RB Bhayshul Tuten (concussion) – returned to the game in the second quarter
Game Recap
Following an opening drive punt by the Jaguars offense, linebacker Devin Lloyd opened the action with his fifth interception of the year, an aerobic behind the back catch, to give the ball back to the offense at the Jacksonville 21. Travis Etienne, smelling blood in the water, kicked off the scoring with a three-yard rush, breaking a tackle at the line to gain. (Jaguars 7, Colts 0)
The Colts immediately answered with an 11-play, 78-yard, 6:07 drive with much of the damage surprisingly done via the air. Daniel Jones wrapped up the drive with completions of 16, 17, 13, and 9, as Jonathan Taylor tied the game up with a one-yard rush. (Jaguars 7, Colts 7)
The Jacksonville offense immediately regained the lead on a 5-play, 74-yard, 2:05 drive featuring a highlight one-handed 39-yard catch by Brian Thomas Jr.
Lawrence followed the highlight grab with a perfect touchdown pass to Jakobi Meyers over the underneath coverage, with Meyers running s stutter-and-go. (Jaguars 14, Colts 7)
Colts QB Daniel Jones, who entered the matchup playing on a reported fractured fibula, left the game on the following drive after grabbing his Achilles on a non-contact play, slamming his helmet into the ground before heading to the locker room late in the first quarter. He was immediately ruled out for the remainder of the game with an Achilles injury – which could massively impact the Jaguars’ playoff chances.
Following a Jacksonville punt, the defense continued to get their hands on the ball, with Eric Murray forcing a Jonathan Taylor fumble as he was falling to the ground.
Jacksonville’s second defensive turnover of the game was again turned into a Travis Etienne touchdown – this one, a 28-yard scamper to extend the Jacksonville lead to 14. (Jaguars 21, Colts 7)
Colts backup QB Riley Leonard led the Colts on a 16-play, 64-yard field goal drive, cutting Jacksonville’s lead to 11. (Jaguars 21, Colts 10)
Following the Colts’ field goal, RB Bhayshul Tuten gave the ball back to Indianapolis, fumbling the ball away on a first down rush, in Indianapolis territory, with 2:39 left in the half.
However, the defense forced a turnover on downs, with the Colts opting to go for it on fourth-and-one from the Jacksonville 44-yard line.
Tim Patrick started the coming drive off rocky, with a second down false start. However, he ended strong, moving the offense into scoring territory with a 37-yard sideline catch, while wearing no gloves in the downpour. He later caught the eight-yard touchdown to extend the halftime lead to 18. (Jaguars 28, Colts 10)
Halftime Stats:
- Score: Jaguars 28, Colts 10
- First downs: Jaguars 13, Colts 11
- Time of possession: Jaguars 11:26, Colts 18:34
- Sacks: Jaguars 0, Colts 0
- Turnovers forced: Jaguars 2, Colts 1
- Rushing yards: Jaguars 75, Colts 54
- Yards per rush: Jaguars 5.8, Colts 2.8
- Passing yards: Jaguars 160, Colts 106
- Passing yards per attempt: Jaguars 8.0, Colts 5.9
- Redzone: Jaguars 3/3 (100%), Colts 1/2 (50%)
- Penalties: Jaguars 6 for 39-yards, Colts 3 for 30-yards
- Points off turnovers: Jaguars 14, Colts 0
QB Trevor Lawrence is 11/20 for 160, 2 TDs, no turnovers, and no sacks (114.6 passer rating). Colts RB Jonathan Taylor has 45-yards rushing on 15-carries (3.0 YPC), 1 TD, a long rush of 6-yards, and a fumble lost.
Indianapolis opened the half with an 8-play, 56-yard field goal drive to cut Jacksonville’s lead to 15. Jacksonville traded field goals with Indianapolis on the next drive, regaining the 18-point lead. (Jaguars 31, Colts 13) as Greg Newsome jumped in front of Leonard’s pass intended for Michael Pittman.
The Jacksonville offense turned the ball over on downs following a Travis Etienne Wildcat rush, short of the line to gain. Nevertheless, the defense wasn’t yet done playing with their food, as Hines-Allen tackled Leonard in the endzone for the first sack of either team’s quarterback, resulting in a safety.
Cam Little added a field goal after Dennis Gardeck recovered the onside kick. (Jaguars 36, Colts 13)
The Colts wrapped up the scoring with a final Leonard touchdown, before Nick Mullens kneeled away the final seconds. (Jaguars 36, Colts 19)
Best highlight:
Brian Thomas Jr, getting the action started early, on a wet field, with a one-handed catch in front of the home crowd? It doesn’t get much better than that, Duval.
Biggest play(s) of the game:
According to rbsdm.com, the biggest play of the game by Expected Points Added (EPA) was Devin Lloyd’s first quarter interception (-5.4 EPA). This was also the biggest play of the game, per win probability (-12%).
Key stats (traditional):
- QB Trevor Lawrence: 17/30 for 244-yards (8.1 YPA), 2 TDs, no sacks, 4 rushes for 16-yards (4.0 YPC), and a 105.4 passer rating
- RB Travis Etienne: 20-carries for 74-yards (3.7 YPC), 2 TDs, 1 catch for 8-yards, and a long rush of 28-yards
- WR Brian Thomas Jr: 3 receptions on 6 targets for 87-yards (29.0 YPR) and a long of 39-yards
- WR Tim Patrick: 5 receptions on 6 targets for 78-yards (15.6 YPR) and a long of 37-yards
- DE Josh Hines Allen: 5 tackles (2 solo), 1 sack (which was a safety), 2 QB hits
- LB Devin Lloyd: 8 tackles (1 solo), 1 pass defensed, 2 QB hits
- S Antonio Johnson: 8 tackles (6 solo)
View the full box score here
Game balls:
- Special Teams: K Cam Little: 2/2 with a long of 48-yards and 4/4 on extra points
- Defense: LB Devin Lloyd: 8 tackles (1 solo), 1 pass defensed, 2 QB hits
- Offense: RB Travis Etienne: 20-carries for 74-yards (3.7 YPC), 2 TDs, 1 catch for 8-yards – both touchdowns occurred in the first half
Full highlights:
- You can watch the top plays of the Week 14 matchup on the NFL’s YouTube channel here.
Post-game notables:
1. Bye Week Wakeup
The Jaguars move to 9-4, in the sole possession of the AFC South lead, as the team now moves to 5-1 since the bye week. The one loss came at the hands of the Houston Texans, where Jacksonville was ahead by 19-points at the start of the fourth quarter. The team has scored 25-plus in each of the matchups, as both sides of the ball seem to be finding their groove.
2. Run Game Discipline
While a stat-line of 20-carries for 74-yards (3.7 YPC) may not scream “dominance on the ground” by Travis Etienne, it’s a winning performance by the veteran back on a wet EverBank day. No turnovers surrendered and two rushing touchdowns (both off turnovers by the opposing team) allowed Jacksonville to play from a position of strength.
3. Turnover Party Continues
Anthony Campanile’s unit continues to prove their early season success at getting their hands on the ball was not a fluke, exiting Sunday with three turnovers. While facing a backup quarterback for much of the final three quarters of play, Jacksonville, the NFL’s leading run defense was dominant, limiting Jonathan Taylor to 74 rushing yards on 21-carries (3.5 YPC), 1 TD, and a fumble lost. When your defense spots the offense three turnovers, scores a safety, and the offense scored 14-points off turnovers, that’s peak complementary football.
What are your thoughts from tonight’s game, Jaguars fans? Who surprised you most or disappointed you with their play tonight? Let us know in the comments.
