Jaguars are officially a playoff threat with Trevor Lawrence leading the way

Heading into Week 16, it was assumed that the Jacksonville Jaguars would lose to the Denver Broncos. Sure, analysts figured it would be a close game and that the Jags would obviously put up a good fight, but instead, they shocked the league with a major upset, and defeated the Broncos — considered to be the best team in the league. Until now, anyway.

Instead of going home with a loss, Jacksonville beat the Broncos at home, in Mile High Stadium, and it wasn't by a little, either, where they just squeaked out a win. No, the Jaguars utterly dominated the Broncos, and proved (if anyone still had any doubt) that they are not only a playoff-worthy team, but that they could well be headed for the Super Bowl.

And who was a major factor in this game? None other than Trevor Lawrence, the quarterback who struggled at the start of this season, only to surge after the BYE. Lawrence proved that he deserves to be seen as an elite-level quarterback, and his career is only getting started.

The Jaguars and Trevor Lawrence just down the NFL’s hottest team

Jacksonville has largely been underestimated this season, and it's something the Jaguars have chosen to lean into as part of their identity. They're the disrespected, overlooked underdogs, and rather than be resentful, the Jags have embraced it. They used the disrespect to fuel them, and it gave them a serious boost in the second half of the season.

And in the meantime, Lawrence is playing so well that he'll easily be going into history as one of the best QBs in franchise history. With this game, Lawrence became the first quarterback in Jaguars history to get multiple seasons with 25 passing touchdowns; only one other Jaguars quarterback (Blake Bortles) had one. And he's on the way to breaking more records, too.

But perhaps the best thing about this game was the vindication of Lawrence. He was hailed as a generational talent in college, but has struggled throughout his time in Jacksonville, much of it not due to any fault of his own. He's had to deal with multiple coaching changes and offensive schemes changing from year to year, with little stability.

Under Liam Coen, Lawrence was expected to thrive, but it was rough at first. They seem to have gotten into a rhythm, though, and Lawrence is finally looking like the elite QB fans thought he could be. And a very strong message has officially been sent: underestimate the Jaguars at your own risk.

This team, under Liam Coen, is bound for big things, and it doesn't seem like there is much that can stop them now.