Jaguars' season comes to unceremonious end with discouraging loss to Texans

The Jacksonville Jaguars entered Week 13 looking to keep their season alive. However, the game took an unexpected turn when Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair laid a dirty hit on Trevor Lawrence that forced him to leave with a concussion. While the Jags tried to rally behind Mac Jones, they came up short at the end.

Early in the game, the Jacksonville offense showed no signs of life. Lawrence was off target in several targets but was seemingly in pain. This isn't surprising when you take into account that he was playing through a shoulder injury. In fact, you could argue that it was surprising to see him suit up.

Either way, Lawrence wasn't able to mount a comeback, as Al-Shaair took him out of the game with a dirty hit in which he was leading with his elbow.

Lawrence was carted off the field and was ruled out with a concussion. Unsurprisingly, Shaair got ejected and will probably expect a suspension from the NFL. But after No. 16 left, there was still plenty of football left in the game, so Mac Jones took over at quarterback.

With Jones behind center, Jacksonville showed signs of life. Down 6-3, the former Alabama standout put together a drive that ended on a field goal to cut the Texans' lead by three points. Following a strong end to the first half, the Jaguars were able to do a better of moving the football.

In the second half, the Jags scored 14 points to drew to within 23-20 with touchdowns receptions from wide receivers Brian Thomas Jr., and Parker Washington, and a field goal by kicker Cam Little.

With the game on the line, the Jags tried to get one last possession to tie the game, but it was too little, too late, and their season has come to an abrupt halt.

Jones was 20-of-32 for 235 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Thomas hauled in four passes for 76 yards with a touchdown while Washington finished with six catches for 103 yards with a tuddy.

What's next for the Jaguars and Trevor Lawrence following the loss to the Houston Texans?

Even if the Jacksonville Jaguars had beaten the Houston Texans, they would've been a long shot to qualify for the postseason. They would've had to go 6-0 the rest of the way just to have a 20 percent chance of getting in.

Without much to play, the Jaguars should strongly consider shutting down Trevor Lawrence for the rest of the season. At this point, it doesn't make sense to expose him any further. Heck, you could even make the case that he shouldn't have played in Week 13, to begin with.

The former Clemson Tiger missed two games while dealing with a shoulder sprain, but did well enough in practice to play against the Texans. That said, he was playing through pain and discussed the possibility of getting season-ending surgery before the game. Following the loss, it should be a strong possibility.

For the sake of the argument, let's say Lawrence is out for the remainder of the season, the coaching staff and the front office must turn their attention to evaluating their current personnel. Granted, general manager Trent Baalke and head coach Doug Pederson are on the hot seat and will probably be gone in 2025, but players will want to put the best possible tape together to show the next regime that they deserve to stay.

In the end, the season didn't go the way the Jacksonville Jaguars expected, and now that they're eliminated from playoff contention, there's not much to do but to turn the page and start preparing for 2025.

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