One of the biggest reasons for Trevor Lawrence's ascent to an MVP-level quarterback is that he had stopped making bad decisions which would lead to interceptions at the worst possible moments.

Unfortunately for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Lawrence made the exact mistake that he had done such a terrific job of avoiding over the team's nine-game winning streak.

Up 13-6 late in the third quarter on the road against the Denver Broncos, Lawrence forced a throw to wide receiver Parker Washington on a third-and-six from midfield that went right into the arms of Denver cornerback Riley Moss.

It was a bad throw by Lawrence, but an even worse decision. Moss had excellent coverage on Washington, and he was the only one of the two who could have made a play on the ball. Washington was also bracketed over the top by a safety. It was never a play that had a chance of being successful. Maybe a back shoulder throw could have found its way into Washington's hands, but it was a throw Lawrence shouldn't have made.

The mistake completely changed the game. Denver immediately drove 64 yards on 10 plays for a game-tying touchdown. Jacksonville had led the entire game following running back Bhayshul Tuten's TD run that gave the Jaguars a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter.

Jacksonville had a chance to re-take the lead, but a 54-yard field goal attempt by Cam Little went wide left.

Denver then drove 56 yards on only five plays to take their first lead of the game. What was once a 13-3 Jacksonville lead was now a 20-13 deficit.

Lawrence was unable to conjure any of the magic everyone had grown accustomed to seeing over the last nine games, and Jacksonville fell to the Broncos 20-13.

To his credit, Lawrence took full responsibility for the loss and for the interception in his post-game comments. The interception completely changed the game, which, up to that point, looked like a Jaguars' win.

Not a pretty win, but a win nonetheless.

Lawrence talked about the chain of events that tipped the scales in Denver's favor. He mentioned the interception leading to the Broncos' tying score, and then the missed field goal right after.

"Those three things happened right in a row. As a team, we just gotta be better at being able to gain the momentum back when something doesn't go right. For me, obviously can't turn the ball over in a crucial situation...It starts with me. Gotta limit those turnovers...I gotta be better, and we gotta be better as a team of just bouncing back after something maybe doesn't go our way..."

The way Lawrence has played going back to the second half of last season has given him a bit of leeway when it comes to making a mistake, so I don't think it would be right to be overly critical of him for having a lackluster game, especially against a great defense like Denver's.

That said, bad decisions in crucial moments, like his interception on Sunday, have always been what prevented Lawrence from becoming an elite quarterback earlier in his career.

I don't think anyone believed the Jaguars were going to go 17-0 this season, and on the road against a very good Broncos team was probably one of the games that looked like a loss when the schedule came out.

However, Sunday's game looked like it would end in a Jacksonville victory for nearly three full quarters. The game did a complete 180 after Lawrence threw the interception. The defense couldn't get a stop when it needed one most, on both of Denver's touchdown drives and when it allowed the Broncos' offense to run out the clock after getting the ball with 4:41 left.

Lawrence knows he has to be better. He has a chance to put the Jaguars back in the win column next week against another tough opponent, the New England Patriots, who are the defending AFC champions.