Jaguars end 20-game skid with last-second FG

10/17/2021

Covered University of Florida for 13 seasons for ESPN.com and Florida Times-Union
Graduate of Jacksonville University
Multiple APSE award winner

The Jacksonville Jaguars’ 20-game losing streak is over.

A 23-20 victory over the Miami Dolphins at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Sunday snapped the Jaguars’ skid, which was the second-longest in NFL history. It was the first time the team has won in 399 days dating back to beating the Indianapolis Colts in the 2020 season opener.

The Jaguars won it on Matthew Wright’s 53-yard field goal as time expired, which was set up by a bit of a sneaky play on fourth-and-8. The Jaguars gave a look like they were going to throw a Hail Mary but quarterback Trevor Lawrence completed a quick 9-yard pass to Laviska Shenault and a quick timeout set up Wright’s third field goal of the game.

The Jaguars hadn’t made a field goal in the first five weeks of the season but Wright made all three of his attempts on Sunday. The Jaguars have made all 15 field goal attempts they’ve made in their eight games in London.

Lawrence threw for 319 yards and one touchdown, Marvin Jones caught seven passes for 100 yards and one touchdown, and defensive end Josh Allen made a critical stop on a fourth-and-1 run that set up the Jaguars with the ball on the Miami 46-yard line for their final possession.

Lawrence is the first rookie quarterback to win a game in London (rookie QBs were 0-5 in London entering Sunday). His 319 passing yards are also the most by a rookie QB in London, beating the previous mark of 309 by former Jaguar Gardner Minshew in 2019.

The Jaguars won the 2020 season opener but lost their next 15 to close out the season — which ensured they would have the top pick in the draft, which they used on Lawrence — and then started the 2021 season 0-5. That stretch of 20 consecutive losses was the second-longest losing streak in NFL history behind only the 26-game streak by the 1976-77 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Bucs, however, were an expansion team in 1976.

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