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After a 14-0 first half that saw Trevor Lawrence make several big plays, the Jacksonville Jaguars looked set to make a breakthrough for their rookie quarterback and head coach Urban Meyer on Thursday.
Joe Burrow had other ideas.
The Cincinnati Bengals responded with two unanswered touchdowns in the third quarter to tie the game after being booed off the field in a listless first half. They then scored with every possession in the second half en route to a 24-21 victory, capped by a late practice that saw Evan McPherson win the game when time ran out.
Burrow ended the night completing 25 of 32 attempted passes for 348 yards with two big touchdowns to tight end CJ Uzomah. Another late Uzomah 25-yard finish saw McPherson win his 35-yard game.
Unprecedented loss for Lawrence, Meyer
Lawrence easily played his best game in the NFL, but it wasn’t enough as Jacksonville fell to 0-4, leaving the Jaguars rookie and Meyer in search of their first NFL wins. The marks of loss Meyer’s first four-game losing streak as head coach. Four losses double Lawrence’s total losses in three seasons at Clemson (34-2).
Lawrence did not hit a touchdown. He also didn’t return the ball after throwing multiple interceptions in each of his first three Jaguars games. The Jaguars set up their offense early behind running back James Robinson, who scored the game’s first touchdown and set the pace for the Bengals’ offense as they had nine first tries in his first 19 games.
Lawrence showed great playing ability
The running game set Lawrence up for early success with his arms and legs as the Bengals struggled to contain Jacksonville’s play option. After scoring 18 rushing touchdowns in three seasons at Clemson, Lawrence scored his first NFL touchdown on an option-read goalie to take the Jaguars’ lead to 14-0 with 4:45 left in the first half. time.
After a defensive save, the Jaguars had the opportunity to register another score before half-time. It was then that Lawrence showed the big arm that made him the NFL’s most coveted quarterback for years. As the two-minute warning approached, Lawrence threw a game bootleg to his right and unleashed a 50-yard strike at Laviska Shenault Jr. that put Jacksonville inside the 15-yard line. Cincinnati.
The first half bet costs Jags
But a Jaguars bet backfired as the first half went by. Jacksonville called for a Lawrence run on the fourth and the Bengals’ 1-yard line goal. The Cincinnati defense pushed Lawrence away from the goal line, and the Jaguars entered the half with a two-possession lead.
The Bengals made them pay the failed bet with a dominant second half. After failing to score in the first half, the Bengals outscored the Jaguars 24-7 in the second half and overtook them in total yards by 420 yards to 341.
The first-half boos quickly turned to cheers as Cincinnati got off to a 3-1 start that gave them hope for a playoff fight.
For the Jaguars, things look considerably better after starting the season with three straight double-digit losses to the Houston Texans, Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals. Lawrence completed 17 of 24 passes for 204 yards without a turnaround and added 36 yards and a rushing touchdown. Robinson had his best game of the season with 78 yards and two touchdowns.
But moral victories won’t mean much to Meyer or Lawrence, who have never experienced anything that looks like this kind of defeat in their footballing careers.
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