The Jaguars came into Saturday night’s game on a four-game winning streak and they were favored to keep it rolling against a reeling Titans team, but the first three-plus quarters didn’t play out that way.
Tennessee went up 10-0 early and the Jaguars offense wasn’t able to catch fire in the second half. Two trips into the red zone ended with field goals and the Titans looked like they might be able to grind out a division title before Jacksonville’s defense finally turned the tide. After an early field goal, the Titans threw an interception, punted twice and then made another turnover that finally put the Jaguars on top.
Jaguars safety Rayshawn Jenkins forced quarterback Josh Dobbs to fumble and Josh Allen returned the ball for a touchdown that gave the Jaguars a 20-16 win. After the game, head coach Doug Pederson said that the journey to the win was similar to the one the team took from 2-6 to the division title.
“This game tonight kind of symbolizes our season,” Pederson said, via Gene Frenette of the Florida Times-Union. “There were some struggles. There were some highs, some lows, but in the end, we had the victory.”
They’ll probably need to be sharper offensively next week if they’re going to beat a team with more firepower than the Titans had to offer, but the defense’s work in the second half bought them the chance to do so.