JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Trevor Lawrence had one the worst first half performances a quarterback could possibly have. But he also had one of the best second half performances as well.
Lawrence lead Jacksonville on a final drive to set up Riley Patterson's 36-yard field goal as time expired to cap off a 27-point comeback and give the Jaguars a 31-30 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday in the AFC Wild Card round.
The first half for Jacksonville and Lawerence was a very forgettable one. The Chargers picked off the Jaguar signal caller four times, leading to 17 of Los Angeles' 27 points.
He became only the third quarterback in the Super Bowl era to throw four interceptions in the first half of a playoff game, joining Detroit’s Gary Danielson and Denver’s Craig Morton.
Luckily for Lawrence, he made sure people would forget that stat and finished the game completing 28 of 47 passes for 288 yards, including four touchdown passes.
Lawrence had trouble early and often, misfiring on a lot of his passes. Boos began to be heard from the stands long before halftime. But the young quarterback pressed on.
He finally got the Jaguars on the board in the final seconds of the first half, connecting with Evan Engram for a nine-yard score to make it 27-7 at the break.
Lawrence would get hot in the second half, tossing touchdown passes to Marvin Jones, Zay Jones and Christian Kirk as the team and fans began to sense a comeback with every score.
As for the Chargers, it was one of the most historic collapses in playoff history. The blown 27-point lead ranks third in NFL playoff history.
Los Angeles appeared to be well in control when Cameron Dicker converted a 23-yard field goal with 4:25 in the second quarter. But despite still being able to move the ball, Los Angeles would only muster up a field goal for the entire second half.
Jacksonville would pull to within four when Lawrence hit Christian Kirk for a nine-yard score. Lawrence would then make one of the biggest plays of the game, leaping into the end zone on the 2-point conversion with 5:25 to play to put the Jaguars in position to win instead of tie.
The Jaguars defense would do their part in forcing a three-and-out by sacking Justin Herbert to force the Chargers to punt. Lawrence would take over from there.
He would engineer a 10-play, 61-yard drive, highlighted by Travis Etienne's 25-yard run on a fourth-and-1 play.
The big play would put the Jaguars in position for Riley Patterson's game-winning kick on the final play. The kick barely stayed inside the right upright and set the home crowd into a frenzy.
Los Angeles 17 10 3 0 = 30
Jacksonville 0 7 13 11 = 31
First Quarter LAC—Austin Ekeler 13 run (Cameron Dicker kick), 13:33. LAC—Cameron Dicker 22 field goal, 5:30. LAC—Austin Ekeler 6 run (Cameron Dicker kick), 0:44. Second Quarter LAC—Gerald Everett 9 pass from Justin Herbert (Cameron Dicker kick), 7:12. LAC—Cameron Dicker 23 field goal, 4:25. JAX—Evan Engram 9 pass from Trevor Lawrence (Riley Patterson kick), 0:24. Third Quarter JAX—Marvin Jones Jr. 6 pass from Trevor Lawrence (Riley Patterson kick), 5:11. LAC—Cameron Dicker 50 field goal, 2:58. JAX—Zay Jones 39 pass from Trevor Lawrence (pass failed), 0:44. Fourth Quarter JAX—Christian Kirk 9 pass from Trevor Lawrence (Trevor Lawrence run), 5:25. JAX—Riley Patterson 36 field goal, 0:00.
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