JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The third largest comeback in NFL playoff history took place in Jacksonville on Saturday evening when the Jaguars stunned the Los Angeles Chargers and stormed back from a 27-0 deficit to advance to the AFC divisional round. It is their first playoff victory since 2017.
“I’m blown away,” Locked on Jaguars host Tony Wiggins said. “I smiled all the way to my car because I saw something in the fan base that I had only dreamed would happen.”
Trevor Lawrence threw four first half interceptions – three in the first quarter – before rallying to throw touchdown passes on four consecutive drives and running for a two point conversation in the second half. That brought the score to 30-28, and a 10-play, 68-yard drive culminated in a game winning field goal as time expired.
While much of the attention is on Los Angeles after a disastrous second half, it was a series of shrewd moves from Jacksonville head coach Doug Pederson that helped spurn the comeback and send Brandon Staley and the Chargers packing.
“Folks, this team is for real, that quarterback is for real, but the man of the hour to me is Doug Pederson,” Wiggins continued. “I want to talk about Dougie real quick. Saving his timeouts, knowing when to decline penalties and having a feel and understanding for what that clock is saying…kudos to him, this is what I told everyone he was going to do.”
Jacksonville heads to Kansas City to take on Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in the AFC divisional round, while the Chargers head home with a lot more questions than answers, including uncertainty about head coach Brandon Staley’s job security heading into the offseason.