Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars are still in position to claim the AFC South.
The Jaguars held on late to beat the Indianapolis Colts 23-17 on Sunday afternoon at Lucas Oil Stadium, which got them to 12-4. That’s the most wins the franchise has had since the 2005 season. They are now in position to win their division with a victory in Week 18, which would give them their first divisional title since the 2022 season.
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And, perhaps more importantly, the dream of claiming the top seed in the AFC isn’t dead yet, either.
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The Colts, despite having nothing to play for after being eliminated from the playoffs with the Houston Texans’ win Saturday, jumped out to a 10-0 lead Sunday after an early field goal and then a 3-yard touchdown run from Jonathan Taylor. That marked Taylor’s 18th rushing touchdown of the season, which is the most in the league.
Lawrence got the Jaguars back in the game. He ran in back-to-back touchdowns from inside the 10-yard line, one right before halftime and then another after halftime to get Jacksonville the lead.
The Jaguars nearly took the lead before halftime but Lawrence was intercepted by Germaine Pratt in the end zone. That was the first pick Lawrence had thrown in more than a month.
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The Colts regained the lead after Lawrence’s second rushing touchdown when Philip Rivers found Mo Alie-Cox for a 5-yard score midway through the third quarter. The Jaguars entered the final period locked up at 17 after a 34-yard field goal from Cam Little.
Though the Jaguars got into field-goal range and blew a shot at points after Lawrence was stopped well short of the line to gain on fourth down, their defense got the ball back just a few plays later. Jarrian Jones jumped in front of a wobbly pass from Rivers to pick up an easy interception, which he nearly ran back for a touchdown.
That set up a 42-yard field goal from Little, who added a 53-yarder in the final seconds to push the Jaguars to the six-point win.
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Rivers went 17-of-30 passing for 147 yards with a touchdown and an interception in the loss for the Colts, who fell to 8-8. Taylor had 71 yards and a score on 21 carries, and Tyler Warren had 43 yards on five catches.
Lawrence finished 23-of-37 passing for 263 yards with an interception for the Jaguars. He had 26 yards and two scores on eight carries. Travis Etienne Jr. had 76 yards on 17 carries, and Parker Washington had 115 yards on eight catches.
The Jaguars’ win keeps them ahead of the Texans in the AFC South standings. They’ll now need to beat the Tennessee Titans next weekend to secure the division. They have already clinched a playoff spot. If they are going to sneak into the No. 1 seed in the AFC, however, they’ll need a few things to happen elsewhere. Along with beating the Titans, the Jaguars would need both the Denver Broncos to lose to the Los Angeles Chargers and the New England Patriots to fall to the Miami Dolphins.
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Regardless of what happens elsewhere, a win next weekend means the Jaguars will host a playoff game. Considering the state of the AFC, that would be extremely beneficial.
