JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — What a response from Liam Coen and the Jacksonville Jaguars. In many ways, this game was a must-win to keep the Jaguars playoff hopes alive. If the team fell to .500, it was likely to be an uphill battle to outduel the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans for the AFC Wildcard spot.
Instead, the team went out and handled business, boot-smacking the Los Angeles Chargers 35-6, and honestly, it wasn’t that close. The Jaguars converted 30 first downs to the Chargers’ eight. On the day, the Chargers managed just 135 total yards, the fewest offensive yards gained by the Chargers since 2003.
A big part of the defense’s success was the Jaguars’ pass-rush. Rendered ineffective for much of the season, the Jaguars defensive line heard the noise and responded, pressuring Justin Herbert and Trey Lance on 50% of dropbacks, according to NFL’s NextGenStats.
The 50% pressure rate and three sacks were both season-highs for the Jaguars, matching the three sacks from the team’s loss against the Bengals.
Prior to the game, the team announced that Emmanuel Ogbah would be a healthy scratch for the first time this season. In his stead, Danny Striggow and BJ Green II really made the most of their opportunities, notching a combined four pressures and a would-be 1.5 sacks, if not for a controversial penalty flag.
On the other side of the ball, the Jaguars’ rushing attack was out in full force. Jacksonville rushed 47 times for 192 yards and four touchdowns. Those 47 attempts are the most by any team this season and the most by the Jaguars since 2010.
Both Travis Etienne and Bhayshul Tuten found success, rushing for 73 yards and 74 yards respectively. The Jaguars’ ability to rush is a big reason as to why the Chargers managed just 22:05 of possession, the lowest by any Harbaugh-coached NFL team.
The Jaguars currently find themselves in the thick of the AFC playoff race. As it stands, they hold that seventh seed, one game up on the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs. Keep pounding the rock and playing excellent defense, and that wildcard spot is all but theirs.
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