A brawl breaks out after Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair forearmed Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence with 4 minutes remaining in the second quarter. Al-Shaair was ejected on the hit that concussed Lawrence. | Will Brown, Jacksonville Today
Published on December 1, 2024 at 4:49 pm
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A concussion. A fight. A fifth straight loss. And the possible end of Trevor Lawrence’s season.
Welcome to December, Jaguars fans.
Jacksonville returned from the bye week to lose to the Houston Texans 23-20 and fall to 2-10 on the season.
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Even with Lawrence back in the lineup, the offense struggled early, gaining just 44 yards in a scoreless first quarter.
The second quarter was highlighted by a bench-clearing brawl sparked by a hit by Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair on Lawrence. Jaguars’ tight end Evan Engram came to Lawrence’s defense, setting off a battle royale near the Jaguars’ sideline.
Al-Shaair and Jaguars’ cornerback Jarrian Jones were ejected after the scrum, and Lawrence was taken off the field on a cart. Lawrence did not return and was reported by the team to have a concussion.
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Mac Jones replaced Lawrence, and the Jaguars proceeded to run the ball on eight consecutive plays before Jones threw an incompletion. Cam Little got the Jaguars on the board with a 33-yard field goal with 8 seconds left before halftime.
The Jaguars trailed 6-3 at the break while gaining only 100 yards in the first two quarters.
In the second half, a 30-yard Cam Little field goal tied the game at 6.
Houston responded with an efficient five-play, 70-yard drive that was capped by a Joe Mixon touchdown run that gave the Texans a 13-6 lead with 8:04 to play in the third quarter.
By the time the fourth quarter opened, the Jaguars trailed by 10 and had totaled 212 yards. The lack of offensive punch, particularly without Lawrence, will continue to be a major question until it is solved.
Were there some bright spots? A few. Brian Thomas Jr. turned a crossing route into a 56-yard gain. It was the fourth time this season that Thomas has delivered on a reception of 50 yards or more, the most among any rookie wide receiver. He also caught a late touchdown, his sixth of the season, tying Allen Hurns’ team record for touchdown catches by a rookie.
Both Travon Walker and Josh Hines-Allen picked up sacks in the game. For Walker, it’s 8.5 this season. For Hines-Allen, it was his sixth on the season.
Parker Washington scored the Jaguars’ first touchdown in 26 possessions on a pass from Jones in the fourth quarter. He came into the game with 118 receiving yards on the season and finished the day with 103 yards.
Beyond that, the positives were few and far between.
There are questions to be answered: Will Trevor Lawrence play again this year? Will the Jaguars find a win over the final five weeks of the season? Can the offense improve enough to be competitive? With games remaining against the Titans (twice) Jets, Raiders, and Colts, the schedule is not loaded with top teams. Then again, the Jaguars are anything but a top team.
Cole Pepper has covered sports in Jacksonville since 1996, most recently for News4Jax. He is currently broadcast director for Sporting Club Jacksonville and has called play-by-play for a number of teams, including the Suns, Tomcats, Jacksonville University, Sharks and The Bolles School football. He also served as the studio host for the Jaguars Radio Network.
