Losing stinks but it’s an inherent part of the NFL and even the best teams lose one or two games per season. Think about it, only one team has had a perfect season in the history of the league and that was the Miami Dolphins back in 1972. The New England Patriots came darn close in 2007 but ended up falling to the New York Giants in Super Bowl 42. The point is that you need to come to terms with losing, take the L and move one.
Having said that, there are some losses that hurt more than others. It’s not a particularly pleasant feeling to drop a game against division rivals. It is also gut-wrenching to lose when you’re close to qualifying for the postseason or when you are one play away from making the Super Bowl, right? This past season, the Jaguars lost plenty of games, 14 to be exact. However, not all of them were as heartbreaking as the others. In fact, some of them were fun because you knew they gave their everything and kept things close. In the same manner, there were a few that were tough. In particular, these three were pretty disappointing.
1. Jaguars’ toughest loss of the 2021 season – Week 10 vs. the Colts.
Throughout the 2021 season, the Jaguars made it a habit to fall behind and lose by ten points (often 17) by halftime. Their Week 10 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts was no different, as they trailed 17-0 before the start of the second quarter. However, this one was unlikely the others and Jags crawled back from the deficit and at one point, they made it 20-17.
With a chance to win in the last game of the drive, defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo sacked Trevor Lawrence in Indy’s 46-yard line with 1:02 left on the clock and put an end to the Jaguars’ comeback attempt. The silver lining is that Jacksonville would repay the favor in their Week 18 rematch and knock the Colts out of playoff contention. Victory is sweet, revenge even better.
2. Jaguars’ toughest loss of the 2021 season – Week 14 vs. the Titans.
In spite of their 3-14 record in 2021, the Jaguars had enough talent to compete more often than not, maybe not to win but they didn’t necessarily have the worst roster in the league. So how did they manage to lose so many games? Easy, Urban Meyer and his inability to lead an NFL team. While the head coach always talked about giving players “the best of the best” and putting them in a position to succeed, his actions didn’t resonate with his words.
Meyer frequently looked clueless during his short stint in Jacksonville, and whenever he was at fault for something, he would not hold himself accountable and would resort to finger-pointing instead. Things got so bad that he led owner Shad Khan no choice but to fire him less than a year into his tenure. The last game he coached with the Jaguars was against the Tennesse Titans in Week 14 and it stands out for how bad they were, losing 20-0 to their division rivals, yikes!
That day, the Jags looked uninspiring, tired, and defeated during and after the fact. Trevor Lawrence had the worst game of his rookie campaign, throwing four interceptions and no touchdowns. It was the first time they had been shut down since 2009 and Meyer had the honor of being the one that allowed it. Not long after the embarrassing loss, the organization gave the head coach his walking papers.
You could make the case this was the lowest point of the Meyer era, and that’s saying something when you take into account that there was no week when he got the spotlight for negative reasons. Whether he got caught getting frisky with a woman that wasn’t his wife Shelley, hiring a coach with a history of making racist comments, or denied benching James Robinson, Meyer was a source of controversy from the moment he stepped in in Duval. The loss against Tennesee embodies his time with the team.
3. Jaguars’ toughest loss of the 2021 season – Week 17 vs. the Patriots.
The outcome of the Jaguars’ Week 17 matchup against the New England Patriots was never in question from the moment it started. The Pats were the favorites to win this one due to Bill Belichick’s record against rookie quarterbacks, the efficient play of Mac Jones, and the fact that the game was held in Foxborough. Having said that, not many predicted Jacksonville was going to lose so badly.
While the game was relatively competitive in the first quarter, things quickly snowballed and the Patriots went on to score 50 points. Trevor Lawrence threw one touchdown, a short pass to running back Dare Ogunbowale but it came when the game was already decided. Moreover, he threw three interceptions. One of them was off a tip passed but still, he and his teammates weren’t able to keep up with New England.
You could argue that even though Urban Meyer was no longer the head coach, he set the team back so badly that they were still recovering from it in Week 17. Sure, brighter days are ahead and Lawrence will most likely lead the Jaguars to many playoff trips but that game against the Pats left a stench that won’t go away anytime soon. They didn’t get shut down like they did against the Titans but they weren’t particularly impressive either.