A strange scent was in the air as the Jacksonville Jaguars prepared to face the Indianapolis Colts yesterday on a gloomy day due to Florida weather.
What was it? Optimism!
The ball club was entering the contest 0 - 4, wishing harsh criticism on coaching decisions and play calling, questionable decision-making on the field, and a fan base who desperately wanted to see their team finally get their first win of the season. Now, the record told all who would watch and be in attendance that the visitors from Indiana were the better team.
However, the record also reflected that the Colts have not won a game in Jacksonville since 2015. True football fans know that records go out the window when rivalry games are played, and everything must come down to what you do that day. This was the case for this particular game.
The Colts stung first with a touchdown to Michael Pittman Jr. from the backup but competent veteran Joe Flacco. The colts held the Jags in check the first quarter, keeping them scoreless for fifteen minutes. However, that wasn't the case for the 2nd quarter. The cardiac cats put 13 points, while the Colts could only respond with a field goal.
This game was special for those in attendance. During halftime, the franchise honored the accomplished coach in the team's history. Tom Coughlin was inducted into the "Pride of the Jaguars." He was joined by several of his former players, such as Jimmy Smith, Fred Taylor, Tony Boselli, and others.
The second half showed the matriculation of QB Trevor Lawrence, who decided to celebrate his birthday by throwing for 371 yards and completing 28 passes out of 34 attempts. The jags defense had a fantastic 3rd quarter. They were holding the Colts scoreless as they came out of the locker room. Things seemed to change as the 4th quarter emerged. Joe Flacco got 183 passing yards in the quarter as the injured secondary of Jacksonville seemly didn't have an answer. However, time ran out for the Colts after rookie Cam Little kicked the Jaguars to their first win of the season.
“Any win, any loss is hard to celebrate because you're right back to work tomorrow, less than 24 hours. We're going to enjoy this one. We're going to look at the tape, make corrections, and move forward.” Doug Peterson said after the team's win. This statement is not surprising coming from the head coach seeing as the Jaguars struggled in their first for games and even to get this win. Either way the coach is happy, the team has found joy, and the fans have something to celebrate on Monday.
There can't be any resting or too much celebration though. The Jaguars get ready for a trip across the pond for two contest and their first will be against a ready Caleb Williams and Chicago Bears this coming Sunday.