‘Greatest comeback of all-time’: Jaguars leave US in disbelief
The US has been left stunned after a disastrous first half from Jacksonville’s Trevor Lawrence set up one of the greatest playoff wins ever.
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The Jacksonville Jaguars have pulled off the third biggest comeback win in NFL playoff history to beat the LA Chargers with a field goal as time expired.
The Jaguars had a first half horrorshow as second-year QB Trevor Lawrence's first playoff game started with four picks in the first half as the Chargers ran out a 27-0 lead.
But the great ones are never done.
After going from an NFL worst season in 2022, the Jaguars took out the AFC South division and Lawrence’s performance was panned, as “disastrous”.
I haven't witnessed every playoff game ever played. But name a first half in any playoff game more disastrous than what the @Jaguars put out there. In every phase from the first to the 30th minute? At home no less. I'm neutral, but speechless.
— Chris Fowler (@cbfowler) January 15, 2023
The second half was a completely different story as Lawrence became the second player in history to have four touchdowns and four interceptions in a playoff game after Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger in 2020.
The result was the third biggest comeback in playoff history, behind only the Bills over the Oliers in 1993 after the Bills were down by 32, and the Colts being down 28 against the Chiefs in 2014.
“They couldn’t have written a better script,” Lawrence said after the game. “We are never out of the fight.
“I was breaking, not a good record in the first quarter, I had a couple of interceptions, we were not looking good offensively but we just kept believing in one another.”
The game had all the hallmarks of a blowout as the Chargers took advantage of Jacksonville’s turnovers, with a pair of rushing touchdowns in the first quarter from Austin Ekeler.
Asante Samuel had grabbed three of the picks for the Chargers, who extended their advantage to 27-0 with Gerald Everett collecting a nine yard touchdown pass from Justin Herbert and Cameron Dicker converting a 23-yard field goal.
The Jags gave themselves some hope just before the interval with Lawrence finding Evan Engram with a nine yard touchdown pass, but there was no sign of what was to come.
Jacksonville began the second half with a 14-play, 89-yard drive which ended with Lawrence finding Marvin Jones in the corner of the end zone.
After a Cameron Dicker 50-yard field goal for the Chargers, Lawrence threw a 39-yard touchdown pass to Zay Jones.
With 5:25 left in the fourth, Lawrence connected with Christian Kirk and then reached across the line for a two-point conversion.
That left Jacksonville needing just a field goal to complete the stunning result and a ten-play, 61-yard drive left Riley Patterson to convert from 36-yards and set off the wild celebrations.
Fans were blown away by what they had seen.
There has never been a wrestling match with the comeback script that we just saw in that football game!!
— Jeremy Padawer (@JeremyCom) January 15, 2023
5 early turnovers.
27 points down.
And they win.
What just happened!!? Greatest comeback of all time.
Congratulations @SeanPayton. Welcome to Los Angeles as the new coach is the @chargers. There is no way Brandon Staley can keep his job after blowing this lead. There’s no coming back from this for him!
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) January 15, 2023
I’m not sure what’s real or a dream. Biggest emotional rollercoaster watching the Jaguars pull off the impossible. #DUUUVAL ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ðŸ˜
— David Hodges (@hodgesreporting) January 15, 2023
Down 27-7 at half with 4 ints at home…. Had them right where they wanted them! JAGS
— Justin Phillips (@JPhil44) January 15, 2023
FINAL - Jaguars 31, Chargers 30 📉
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) January 15, 2023
Trailing 27-0 with 3:18 remaining in the 2nd quarter, the @Jaguars had just a 1.2% chance of winning. The Jaguars' late-game comeback goes down as the 5th-most improbable of the season.#LACvsJAX | Powered by @awscloudpic.twitter.com/K1Thyc6OqI
A devastated Chargers head coach Brandon Staley said: “This is the toughest way you can lose in the playoffs. Certainly the way we started the game, that’s the team I know we’re capable of being and in the second half, we just didn’t finish the game.
“We’re going to learn a lot from this. Unfortunately this is the tough side of things. Our season is over but I love everybody in that change room. This was a step for us and we’re going to learn a lot from it.”
49ers rookie stuns
Earlier, rookie quarterback Brock Purdy led the San Francisco 49ers past the Seattle Seahawks 41-23 in the NFL playoffs on Saturday.
San Francisco quarterback Purdy, who only took on the starting role last month after injury to Jimmy Garoppolo, became the first rookie quarterback with three touchdown passes and a rushing touchdown in a playoff game.
Putting any early nerves aside, Purdy threw for 332 yards and no interceptions while running back Christian McCaffrey rushed for 119 yards.
The 49ers made a strong start, opening up a 10-0 lead when McCaffrey rushed three yards into the end zone to finish off a drive that had seen him produce a blistering 68-yard run.
Seattle responded early in the second quarter with Kenneth Walker III’s seven-yard rushing TD.
A 33-yard field goal from Robbie Gould for the 49ers made it 13-7, but Seattle got themselves in front when quarterback Geno Smith found DK Metcalf with a 50-yard scoring pass.
Another Gould field goal restored San Francisco’s advantage but then some ill-discipline from the normally rock solid Niners defence allowed the Seahawks to go in at halftime with a 17-16 lead.
Smith was sliding when Jimmie Ward inexplicably dived into a low tackle conceding a 15-yard penalty that led to Jason Myers’s 56-yard field goal.
But San Francisco started the second half in emphatic fashion with a 13-play drive ending in a quarterback sneak from Purdy.
Smith was than sacked by Charles Omenihu with Nick Bosa recovering the ball for a decisive turnover.
Purdy connected with Jauan Jennings with a 33-yard pass and then found Elijah Mitchell with a short pass which the running back took into the end zone.
The 49ers went for the two-point conversion, Purdy finding tight-end George Kittle to make it 31-17.
Seattle fell further behind when they left Deebo Samuel in acres of space to collect a pass from Purdy and burst down the left for a 74-yard touchdown.
When Smith was picked off by Deommodore Lenoir it was all over for a Seattle team who had snuck into the playoffs when the Green Bay Packers lost their final game of the regular season.
— AFP
Originally published as ‘Greatest comeback of all-time’: Jaguars leave US in disbelief
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