How the Jaguars Avoided 5th Loss

The Jacksonville Jaguars started the season 0-4 and losing three of those four games by less than a touchdown, the Jaguars won a close game. They are no longer the only winless team in the National Football League.

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Tank Bigsby (4) outpaces Indianapolis Colts cornerback Samuel Womack III (33) for a touchdown score during the fourth quarter of an NFL football matchup Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars edged the Colts on a field goal 37-34. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After starting the season 0-4 and losing three of those four games by less than a touchdown, the Jacksonville Jaguars were looking for a change.

That change came Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, as the Jaguars finally pulled out a close win. Jaguars coach Doug Pederson felt the comeback win was significant for the team.

“It's huge,” Pederson said. “ It's huge. It's an opportunity to go win the game, and the sideline was into it. The guys were into it. They wanted the ball in their hands. The O-line wanted the ball. 

"It's good for us to do that as a football team. I thought today was a really good complementary football game. Three aspects. We had a nice punt return in there. [K Cam Little] with his kicks. 

“[P Logan Cooke] had a nice punt in there. Special teams did their part. The defense, obviously, came up huge. [DE Travon Walker], the three sacks today. The offense did their part. This is a really good complementary game today.”

Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence was glad the team finally pulled out a close game after losing multiple games this season by less than one possession.

“I think you've got to stay up the entire time, and you have to stay aggressive,” Lawrence said. “I've been a part of a lot of games in my career, ones where we've been able to do something like that and finish. I feel like when we stay aggressive, we stay in the moment and don't worry about what's going on on the other side of the ball. 

“That's not our job. Our job is when we get the ball, put yourselves in a position to score. Whether we're up 14 and the defense gets a stop, and we get to go up 21 and put the game away, or that other team's good too. They battle, get back in it, and score a couple of times. “If that's to go down the field and kick a game-winning field goal, that's our job,”

The veteran quarterback noted that the offense was willing to do whatever it took to help the team get its first win of the season. Still, as happy as Lawrence was about the team’s aggressiveness late in the game, he and the offense could have performed better down the stretch. 

“So, I think today we did a good job of staying in the moment and staying aggressive and attacking," Lawrence said. "Some of the situations, like the first drive – or the drive before the last one – we were up seven, and there's like four and a half minutes left. 

“And part of you is you want to be able to run the clock, stay in bounds, hopefully, get some first downs, chew the clock, maybe score, get a field goal, whatever it is. You want to use the clock, but you also have to stay aggressive. We ended up going three and out, and I thought we did a good job of staying aggressive. 

“Didn't make the plays. I missed a throw, could have put it more outside to Gabe. That situation, you can't shell up and try not to lose the game. 

“You've got to go win it. Honestly, I thought the staff did a great job. Press [Offensive Coordinator Press Taylor] did a great job of trusting me. Put the game in my hands at the end, so it was fun, and it's cool when we execute, and it pays off.”

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