Trevor Lawrence carries lifetime unbeaten streak on Saturdays into Chiefs-Jaguars game
The Jacksonville Jaguars will play their third straight game on a Saturday when they face the Chiefs in an AFC Divisional playoff contest at Arrowhead Stadium.
That’s unusual for an NFL team, which usually plays on Sunday, but Saturday games have suited the Jaguars well.
Jacksonville beat Tennessee in a Week 18 game and clinched the AFC South title. The Jaguars then beat the Chargers 31-30 in a wild wild-card game last Saturday.
That continued Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence’s remarkable streak. As Mark Long of the Associated Press noted, Lawrence has a 37-0 record in games on a Saturday, dating to his high school days.
Lawrence had a 34-2 record as a starter at Clemson, and the defeats came in the college football playoffs. Neither was held on a Saturday. Long said Lawrence won all 32 of his Saturday starts at Clemson and was 3-0 in high school Saturday games, too.
Heck, Lawrence couldn’t remember if he lost a middle-school game played on a Saturday, so he may be undefeated on that day.
“I take a lot of pride in it because we play on a Saturday again,” Lawrence told reporters Tuesday. “It is what it is. I don’t really think about that. I think about we’ve got to win this game to keep going, to keep playing, to keep our season alive. So that’s what I think about trying to go 38-0, if you want to put it that way.
“But about that streak or whatever, just honestly kind of a coincidence that I’ve had Saturday games on all three levels. But, yeah, let’s keep that going. That means we’re playing again next week. That’s the plan.”
One other stat of note: Lawrence is 0-1 lifetime against the Chiefs. The Jaguars lost 27-17 to the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in a Week 10 game on Nov. 13.
It’s now Week 20, but Lawrence remembers the Jaguars didn’t play their best game in November. That started with their first possession, which came after the Jaguars’ onside kick on the opening kickoff. Jacksonville got a first down but ended up punting.
“We got the onside kick and kind of stole a possession in the beginning and we didn’t really make our possessions count the first quarter and a half or all the way down to like the last 2-minute drive in the first half,” Lawrence said. “We just didn’t really do anything with the ball. Our defense held in there especially early and gave us some possessions and that’s the one thing: I think we just we left a lot on the table. ...
“As the game went on, I thought we played better offensively. But when you’re playing a team like them that has a great offense, a high-powered offense that can score a lot of points and even if your defense is playing well you got to score to beat guys like this, especially a guy like Patrick (Mahomes) over there, so you’re aware of that and there’s definitely some stuff we left out there and I’m excited to get another opportunity. It’s gonna be fun.”
Lawrence had a Jekyll and Hyde game against the Chargers last Saturday. He threw four first-half interceptions, but the Jaguars scored four touchdowns and a field goal on their final five possessions.
NBC Sports’ Mike Tirico, who will call Saturday’s contest, believes the calm Lawrence displayed against the Chargers should help him for a playoff game at Arrowhead Stadium.
“The fact that they played at Arrowhead already helped,” Tirico said. “So even though it’s loud, and it’ll be louder for a playoff game than for week 10, there’s familiarity with the stadium and the crowd noise and all that. But also the calm that has to be present to execute under pressure. There’s only so many people who can tell you, ‘Hey, you’re playing in a playoff game. It’s got to be like this.’ Then you’ve got to go through it.
“But now he’s been down in a playoff game and had as bad a half as he could ever have, and then just stayed steady. And I think that steadiness is a reflection of (Jaguars coach) Doug Peterson. Doug just hung with this guy and stayed calm, stayed steady and really called a heck of a second half and eventually they figured out what they needed to do. The scars from that game, although newly formed, I think will be valuable for this game.”
This story was originally published January 18, 2023 at 11:46 AM.
