DENVER, Colo. \u2013 They had control. Then they didn’t.<\/p>\n
The Jaguars had a double-digit lead and momentum in a key early-season game Sunday. But in front of a raucous crowd and against a poised opponent, they held neither. The result was the end of a winning streak.<\/p>\n
Denver Broncos running back Jonah Coleman’s 3-yard fourth-quarter touchdown run keyed a strong rally, with the Jaguars squandering a 10-point third-quarter lead as the Broncos dominated the second half of a 20-13 victory in front of 76,472 at Empower Field at Mile High<\/a> Sunday afternoon.<\/p>\n “We just weren’t in sync enough, especially in the second half,” Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen<\/a> said, with quarterback Trevor Lawrence<\/a> calling the loss, “Definitely disappointing.”<\/p>\n “We have to find a way to hold on to that and go put somebody away,” Coen said of the double-digit second-half lead.<\/p>\n Coleman’s touchdown came with 7:21 remaining and marked the first time the Jaguars trailed this season. The Jaguars punted on their ensuing possession and did not regain possession.<\/p>\n The Jaguars finished with 115 second-half yards and finished the game with 268 total yards.<\/p>\n “It was tough sledding for us on offense the entire game,” Lawrence said.<\/p>\n The Jaguars (1-1), who beat the Broncos 34-20 in Denver in Week 16 last season, lost for the first time after a nine-game regular-season winning streak dating to last season. The Broncos, last season’s AFC West Champion, improved to 1-1.<\/p>\n “It’s disappointing, but it’s a learning lesson for us,” Jaguars defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton<\/a> said. “It’s early in the season. We still have a lot of ball to play ahead of us. It’s all good.”<\/p>\n The Jaguars led 10-3 at halftime and 13-3 in the third quarter, but the Broncos rallied with a long field goal by Wil Lutz in the third quarter before a short touchdown pass from Broncos quarterback Bo Nix to tight end Nate Adkins tied the game early in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n “We played the opposite way in the second half as we did the first half,” Lawrence said. “We played complementary and played really well off the momentum our defense was creating [in the first half].<\/p>\n “We just didn’t make enough plays in the back half of the second half”<\/p>\n The Jaguars last started the regular season 2-0 in 2018.<\/p>\n “We were not on our details the rest of the game, so that’s disappointing,” Jaguars linebacker Foyesade Oluokun<\/a> said. “I’m looking at ourselves inward. It’s an opportunity to get better.”<\/p>\n Lawrence completed 17 of 29 passes for 189 yards with zero touchdowns and one interception, with the interception coming late in the third quarter and leading to Adkins’ game-tying touchdown. Nix completed 22 of 31 passes for 288 yards with one touchdown and zero interceptions.<\/p>\n Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington<\/a> caught seven passes for 98 yards, with his 32-yard reception from Lawrence in the second quarter setting up the game’s first touchdown.<\/p>\n The Jaguars’ defense twice in the second quarter held the Broncos inside the Jaguars’ 10-yard line, forcing a short field goal on one drive before cornerback Jourdan Lewis<\/a> intercepted Nix’s pass to wide receiver Courtland Sutton in the end zone just before the two-minute warning.<\/p>\n