Jags’ Trevor Lawrence stumbles, recovers for winning TD

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Trevor Lawrence panicked.

Liam Coen thought: Throw it away.

Travis Hunter had no idea what was going on.

It was a chaotic few seconds for the Jacksonville Jaguars, but by the time it was over Lawrence was in the end zone and the Jaguars had a 31-28 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs at EverBank Stadium on Monday night.

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“It was a crazy, crazy finish,” Lawrence said.

That’s probably the best way to describe his 1-yard touchdown run after he fell when right guard Patrick Mekari stepped on his foot — though Coen offered up “goofy.” Lawrence tried to get back up, stumbled again, then got to his feet with the intention of throwing the ball away before seeing a lane and taking off, eventually diving into the end zone with 23 seconds left.

It might have been an unconventional finish, but it was a significant moment for the maligned Lawrence, who had a rough start to the season while learning his third offense under his third head coach since the franchise selected him No. 1 in 2021. His second touchdown run capped Jacksonville’s comeback from a 14-0 deficit and showed a national audience he can make the Jaguars legitimate contenders in the AFC.

“It’s a goofy finish, but what a tough moment for him to be able to say he wasn’t going to lose, and that’s kind of really what it comes down to,” Coen said. “He wasn’t going to lose and he made an unbelievable individual effort that hopefully can continue to springboard us.”

Lawrence completed 18 of 25 passes for 221 yards with a touchdown and an interception, with his best throw a 33-yarder to Brian Thomas Jr. on a third down on the winning drive. Three plays later, he took a snap from the 1-yard line, fell, stumbled again, got up, ran to his left, broke a tackle and dove for the TD.

“I mean, I just panicked, honestly,” Lawrence said. “I was trying to get up to get the ball out of my hands. We didn’t have any timeouts left so I was really going to just stand up and launch it out the back of the end zone.”

It was fitting that Lawrence won the game with a run because he said after the Sept. 28 game against San Francisco that he felt like he missed some opportunities to run the ball. He ended up leading the Jaguars in rushing Monday night (54 yards on 10 carries), which included a 10-yard TD run in the third quarter. His two scramble TDs against the Chiefs equaled his total scramble TDs in his first four seasons.

“That’s something I’ve realized just the first couple weeks. I think I’ve had some opportunities to be able to extend plays using my legs,” Lawrence said. “That’s our greatest asset on third down besides guys getting open in coverage. The defensive schemes are really good, and sometimes they cover all the guys, and our O-line has been blocking really well, so being able to escape, use my legs, make the defense defend the whole field … made a big impact for us tonight.”

Lawrence also had zero off-target throws for just the second time in this career. He did that while missing tight end Brenton Strange (hip) for the entire second half and losing center Robert Hainsey in the fourth quarter.

“I mean, I just panicked, honestly. I was trying to get up to get the ball out of my hands. We didn’t have any timeouts left so I was really going to just stand up and launch it out the back of the end zone.”

Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence

“Trevor has just been a dog, no matter the adversity that he was [dealing with], what we had to go through,” said Hunter, who had a season-high 64 yards receiving on three catches, including a 44-yarder that set up the Jaguars’ second touchdown. “He just continued to go next play, next play mindset and continued to bring the offense along with him.”

What he also did was put the Jaguars atop the AFC with the same record as Buffalo and Indianapolis and proved, by beating Patrick Mahomes head-to-head, that the Jaguars should be taken seriously as a contender.

“We have to take it week by week and obviously we think we’re a good team, so we believe that,” Lawrence said. “But you don’t listen to the outside noise and not many of those people were around at the beginning of the season.

“So, it’s really about the guys in that locker room, the staff, coach, all the people that put the work in and we have that confidence and belief. That’s what matters.”

ESPN Research contributed to this report.