If the Jacksonville Jaguars entered their Week 16 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the knowledge that their back was against the wall and they desperately needed a win, it was hard to tell on the field.
In a 30-12 blowout loss in Tampa Bay, just about everything went wrong for the Jaguars.
A turnover-prone offense gave the ball away four times to the Buccaneers defense, and the defense didn’t force a punt until the fourth quarter.
With two weeks left in the season, the Jaguars look lost in every sense of the word. Here’s what went down in Jacksonville’s most embarrassing loss of the season yet:
Jaguars MVP of the game: WR Calvin Ridley
It’s hard to find many positives for the Jaguars, but Ridley was one of them. The receiver caught six passes and got big chunks of yardage on just about all of them. He finished with 90 receiving yards and was also the only Jaguars player to get points Sunday, hauling in two touchdowns.
Buccaneers MVP of the game: QB Baker Mayfield
The battle of former No. 1 overall picks was decisively won by Mayfield, who completed 26 of his 35 passes for 284 yards with two touchdown passes and no interceptions.
Jaguars play of the game: Calvin Ridley's 18-yard touchdown
Jags are on the board! Trevor Lawrence ➡️ Calvin Ridley for the 18 yard TD! Ridley took a big hit from Winfield Jr! pic.twitter.com/vqb72TSbuO
— Video from: @TSV__1 (@TSV__1) December 24, 2023
It’s not hard to sift through Jaguars highlights from Sunday. There weren’t many and Ridley’s touchdown grab was one of two on the day for the veteran receiver.
It was over when ... a 4th down throw to Jamal Agnew fell incomplete
Determining when exactly the avalanche was too deep to overcome is a fool’s errand. You could argue the game was over by halftime.
With a 27-point deficit early in the third quarter, the Jaguars needed touchdowns fast, but came up short on a drive into Tampa Bay territory when a fourth down pass sailed over Agnew’s head. Any hope of a miraculous comeback essentially died there.
Stat that says it all: 21 Buccaneers points off turnovers
We'll take that 😏
📺: #JAXvsTB on CBS pic.twitter.com/Z3JgYRWKhK
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) December 24, 2023
Despite continuing to emphasize the need to avoid turnovers, the Jaguars offense couldn’t avoid them against the Buccaneers. Two first half interceptions thrown by Lawrence resulted in Tampa Bay touchdowns and the second half started with more of the same.
What's next?
The spiraling Jaguars will play their final home game of the regular season when they host the cellar-dwelling 2-13 Carolina Panthers. Earlier on Sunday, the Panthers came close to picking up a second consecutive win, but lost 33-30 to the Green Bay Packers.
