A devastating collapse fuels an unprecedented turnaround, transforming a season-ending loss into a championship-defining victory for the Jaguars.
The Jacksonville Jaguars lost the type of game that could destroy a season.
On Nov. 9, the Houston Texans were toast.
Jacksonville entered the fourth quarter with a 29-10 lead, and it was all set for the Jags to improve to 6-3 with a big win on the road and for the Texans to fall to 3-6, which would have put their playoff hopes on life support.
Then, well, Jacksonville lost.
Now, the Jags sat at 5-4, with an immensely talented but erratic quarterback and a rookie head coach who hadn't proven that he could win.
The comeback did wonders for the Texans, who went on to win their last eight regular-season games and finish 12-5.
Surely, it had the reverse effect for the team on the wrong end, right?
Nope.
Because, like Houston, the Jaguars didn't lose again in 2025.
Unlike Houston, Jacksonville won the AFC South.
"I'm very proud of this group," coach Liam Coen said after the team clinched the division with a blowout win over the Tennessee Titans Sunday. "The resiliance of this group, the mental toughness of this group. Started a little bit hot in ways (4-1) and then had a tough stretch. You're up 20 in the fourth quarter and end up losing a game, and then to turn this thing around and these guys to stay the course, keep allowing us to keep coaching. They're a fun, special group to be around."
Of course, none of it would have been possible without Mr. Lawrence.
The aforementioned "erratic quarterback" who had 11 interceptions through his first 11 starts began to play like the slam-dunk No. 1 draft choice Jacksonville made him in 2021, and as a result, eclipsed 4,000 yards for the third time in the last four seasons, among other milestones.
After Lawrence got to 4,000, Coen pulled him, with the game in hand and nothing else to accomplish in the regular season.
"I think just the year that he's had, especially since the bye, the way that he's playing at an MVP caliber," Coen said. "He's earned it. He's playing at such a high level. The players all love him. They trust him. They believe in him, as do we as coaches. So you want those kinds of things for players like that."
The players deserve the most credit, but the job Coen and the Jags front office have done shouldn't be overlooked, either.
The division championship was punctuated by Coen embracing owner Tony Khan and general manager James Gladstone-- another rookie.
It was the first championship they had won together, and there's no reason to think it will be the last.
"Tony and James and I, it's a pretty cool relationship," Coen said. "It obviously goes beyond just a working friendship, and I can't thank them enough for their support, and we truly do it all together. That's the cool part. Everything that we do, every decision that we make, is together, is a group effort."