After finishing 13-3 in the regular season, the Jacksonville Jaguars welcomed the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the playoffs. You know this was going to be a close matchup when the Jags began the week as the underdog but became the favorite as game day approached.
The Jaguars most definitely gave their all and had the Bills against the ropes several times. However, it wasn't ultimately enough to come out on top. With this in mind, here are four observations from soul crushing 27-24 loss.
Josh Allen outdueled Trevor Lawrence, and that proved to be the difference
The Bills weren't able to light up the scoreboard, but their offense most definitely gave Jacksonville trouble. Although Anthony Campanile's unit was able to slow down Josh Allen and co., Buffalo did a superb job of draining the clock. That, in turn, limited the amount of possessions the Jags had.
Couple that with the fact that the Jags weren't able to generate any takeaways, and it's easy to see why the Bills dominated the time of possession battle. This might have put more pressure on Trevor Lawrence to perform, and he wasn't nearly as efficient as his Bills counterpart, completing 18 of 29 passes for 207 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.
All things considered, it wasn't a bad statline, but it wasn't good enough either for Lawrence to put the Jaguars on top. The fact that he threw the game-sealing interception most definitely stings.
Parker Washington once again came up clutch for the Jaguars
For a brief moment, it looked like the Jaguars were going to be without Parker Washington when he left the game to be checked for a concussion. The great news was that he was cleared and came back. His return was huge.
Washington went on to make a huge difference throughout the game, hauling in seven receptions for 107 yards with one touchdown. Even though the Jags ended up losing, having him around most definitely gave them a fighting chance.
The Jaguars missed Cole Van Lanen vs. the Bills
Although the Jaguars only listed one player as questionable, it was a very important one. Cole Van Lanen. The fourth-year left tackle is dealing with a knee injury and tried to give it a go during warmups. However, he was ultimately held out. Walker Little filled in and reminded everyone why he was benched at the midpoint of the season.
Little was flagged twice for a false start, effectively holding the offense back. The 2021 second-round pick had a chance to boost his stock, but instead has probably played his last down on Black & Teal.
Cam Little missed his first field goal in weeks
After a midseason funk, Cam Little managed to bounce back to finish the year strong. Along the way, he nailed field goals of 68 and 67 yards. Given his ability to nail long attempts, it's not surprising that the Jags leaned on him just before halftime to try to make a 52-yard kick. It went right and missed.
When you take into account that the Jaguars lost by three points, you can most definitely make the case that making that field goal would've been huge.