The Jaguars lost their eighth straight game, the longest losing streak of the year, in one of the most lopsided losses in franchise history, 50-10, to the Patriots on Sunday.
The 40-point margin of defeat tied for the third worst in Jaguars’ history. The Jaguars dropped to 2-14 on the season. Here were my four biggest takeaways from Sunday’s game:
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Trevor’s tailspin continues
Lawrence had some good moments in the loss and managed a garbage time touchdown to dress up another bad day. Playing behind a makeshift line and without James Robinson, Lawrence was intercepted three times, one of which was not his fault (a throw through the hands of running back Ryquell Armstead). He tossed a touchdown pass to Dare Ogunbowale on a screen pass with 3:48 to play. It was his first scoring pass in his last 184 pass attempts.
Lawrence has now thrown 10 touchdowns and 17 interceptions this season. That’s nowhere near what was expected out of the first overall pick. He has one more game to improve the numbers, but the true improvement won’t be able to occur until next season. Lawrence must be a big part of the improvement.
Mac Jones dominated
Jones, the former Bolles quarterback, was in total control of the game. In a matchup of rookie quarterbacks, Jones was clearly the better signal caller. He completed 12 of 14 passes in the first half and finished the game 22 of 30 for 227 yards and three touchdown passes. He played only one drive in the fourth quarter.
Moreover, he didn’t put his team in jeopardy of losing to an inferior team. Jones rarely looked down field, instead working the short and intermediate passing game to perfection. Better coached. Better prepared. Better performance.
Draft status
With the loss, the Jaguars moved to within one loss (or a Detroit win) from clinching the top overall pick for the second straight year. The big questions on this subject are who will make the selection and who will they pick?
We’ll have a lot of time to discuss the top pick in the coming months, but the fact that the Jaguars will select No. 1 for the second straight year tells you everything you need to know about the state of the franchise right now.
What’s next?
The season finale is Sunday at home against the Indianapolis Colts. The Jaguars will enter that game having lost 29 of the past 32 games over two seasons. How will fans great the team? I would expect some painted faces and red noses will be seen around the stadium.