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NFL: Week 11 Titans 24, Jaguars 14
Second Half Slaughter: Jacksonville Jaguars become Tennessee Titans' 10th victim after getting outscored 21-0 in 2nd half
Jags outscored 21-0 after break
JACKSONVILLE --
Paul Spicer didn't skirt around with empty clich�s and rehearsed postgame monologues after his Jacksonville Jaguars lost a 24-14 must-win game to the undefeated Tennessee Titans.
After watching what was the Jaguars' best first-half performance of the season go down the toilet, he could only acknowledge the moment exactly for what it was:
"Crap."
The 10-0 Titans added another week's worth of bragging rights as the lone undefeated team in the NFL.
And the Jaguars stand to lose all their rights to a postseason. The team is barely in contention for a wild-card berth to the playoffs, and with division rivals Houston, Indianapolis and non-division rival Green Bay on the radar, things aren't adding up for a happy ending.
With six regular-season games left, Jacksonville has yet to consistently deliver two successful halves.
"This is it. It's a conference game, we're at home in front of our fans, we wanted to come out and do the things we wanted to do, practiced, and the second half we came out flat," said Spicer, who finished with three tackles. "The way we played was disgusting in the second half."
Jacksonville's defense allowed 216 total yards in the second half. On offense, the Jaguars were limited to just three first downs.
But what disappointed players most was that this came after the best first half they played all season.
Titans running back Chris Johnson was limited to just 35 yards at the half, without a single double-digit carry.
Fred Taylor, who had his third-longest carry of the season at 22 yards, looked like anything but an old veteran.
Maurice Jones-Drew barreled his way into the end zone twice in the first half to tie the Titans' LenDale White for a league-leading 11 touchdowns this season. All this against a defense ranked No. 5 in the NFL.
The Jaguars led 14-3 at halftime. But they faced what seemed like a new Titans team in the following 30 minutes of regulation.
"They beat our butts. They dominated us in the second half," Taylor said. "We gotta finish the game and that's it."
In fairness, the Jaguars were successful in their main goal -- slowing Tennessee's run game. But that mattered little because all three touchdowns came by air instead of ground.
"We felt if we were going to win this game, we would have to make plays down the field," said Titans quarterback Kerry Collins. "Guys came up big and obviously, Justin Gage had a huge day. Give our receivers a lot of credit today."
Gage had two touchdown catches and rang up 147 yards. Backup receiver Brandon Jones converted one of his two catches for a touchdown in the third quarter.
Jaguars quarterback David Garrard threw his solo interception, just his sixth of the season, with just under six minutes left.
Tennessee was able to score the game-sealing touchdown on the following drive when Collins drove a deep 38-yard pass along the left sideline to Gage.
If there's any hope of a postseason, the Jaguars must beat Minnesota next week at home.
"We'd have to win every one to have a chance to qualify," said Jaguars Coach Jack Del Rio. "It's a very remote possibility."
Shannon J. Owens can be reached at sjowens@orlandosentinel.com.
After watching what was the Jaguars' best first-half performance of the season go down the toilet, he could only acknowledge the moment exactly for what it was:
Related Content
The 10-0 Titans added another week's worth of bragging rights as the lone undefeated team in the NFL.
And the Jaguars stand to lose all their rights to a postseason. The team is barely in contention for a wild-card berth to the playoffs, and with division rivals Houston, Indianapolis and non-division rival Green Bay on the radar, things aren't adding up for a happy ending.
Next Up For The Jacksonville Jaguars
Season record: 5-11Next Game: Season over Last Game: Dec. 28, L to Baltimore, 27-7 | |
|
• Photos: 2008 | 2007 • Schedule/results: 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 |
• Jaguars:
Stats • NFL: News | Scores | Stats Standings | Teams Weather | Odds |
"This is it. It's a conference game, we're at home in front of our fans, we wanted to come out and do the things we wanted to do, practiced, and the second half we came out flat," said Spicer, who finished with three tackles. "The way we played was disgusting in the second half."
Jacksonville's defense allowed 216 total yards in the second half. On offense, the Jaguars were limited to just three first downs.
But what disappointed players most was that this came after the best first half they played all season.
Titans running back Chris Johnson was limited to just 35 yards at the half, without a single double-digit carry.
Fred Taylor, who had his third-longest carry of the season at 22 yards, looked like anything but an old veteran.
Maurice Jones-Drew barreled his way into the end zone twice in the first half to tie the Titans' LenDale White for a league-leading 11 touchdowns this season. All this against a defense ranked No. 5 in the NFL.
The Jaguars led 14-3 at halftime. But they faced what seemed like a new Titans team in the following 30 minutes of regulation.
"They beat our butts. They dominated us in the second half," Taylor said. "We gotta finish the game and that's it."
In fairness, the Jaguars were successful in their main goal -- slowing Tennessee's run game. But that mattered little because all three touchdowns came by air instead of ground.
"We felt if we were going to win this game, we would have to make plays down the field," said Titans quarterback Kerry Collins. "Guys came up big and obviously, Justin Gage had a huge day. Give our receivers a lot of credit today."
Gage had two touchdown catches and rang up 147 yards. Backup receiver Brandon Jones converted one of his two catches for a touchdown in the third quarter.
Jaguars quarterback David Garrard threw his solo interception, just his sixth of the season, with just under six minutes left.
Tennessee was able to score the game-sealing touchdown on the following drive when Collins drove a deep 38-yard pass along the left sideline to Gage.
If there's any hope of a postseason, the Jaguars must beat Minnesota next week at home.
"We'd have to win every one to have a chance to qualify," said Jaguars Coach Jack Del Rio. "It's a very remote possibility."
Shannon J. Owens can be reached at sjowens@orlandosentinel.com.
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