Jacksonville Jaguars beat Tennessee Titans 20-16, winning a spot in the Playoffs

JACKSONVILLE, Fla — The Jacksonville Jaguars are AFC South champions for the first time in five years, a title secured when Josh Allen returned a fumble 37 yards for a touchdown that helped them seal a 20-16 victory over Tennessee on Saturday night.

Rayshawn Jenkins forced Josh Dobbs’ fumble, and Allen scooped up the bouncing ball and ran, untouched, the other way for a lead that held up against the Titans in a win-and-in game in the regular-season finale for both.

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Dobbs fumbled again on the ensuing possession, and the Jaguars (9-8) started to celebrate their most significant regular-season victory in franchise history.

“This was one of those games where our defense had to win it for us,” Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said. “Us guys on offense, we’re a little frustrated because we left a lot out there, But in these games, just win. Our defense picked us up today. They played great.”

Jacksonville earned the No. 4 seed in the conference playoffs and will host either the Los Angeles Chargers or Baltimore in the wild-card round next weekend.

It’s the 18th time in the last 20 seasons that at least one NFL team won its division after finishing last or tied for last the previous year.

Jacksonville closed the regular season with its fifth consecutive victory and became the fifth team in NFL history to make the playoffs with a five-game losing streak and a five-game winning streak in the same season.

“We just kept believing,” Lawrence said. “Nobody ever lost faith. Everybody believed in one another. We never started pointing the finger. We lost five games straight and we just got tighter.”

Tennessee (7-10) lost its final seven games, a skid that had just about everyone writing them off before Saturday’s finale.

The Titans rested several starters last week and essentially created a 10-day break to get healthy. They returned to their bruising brand of football and looked like they would pull an improbable turnaround — until Dobbs’ turnover changed the game.

The Jaguars were 6 1/2-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, and a near-sellout crowd was on hand to witness what many thought would be more of a coronation than a scratch-and-claw nail-biter.

The Titans didn’t do anything spectacular. With quarterback Ryan Tannehill (ankle) out for the season, they leaned on Dobbs — an aerospace engineer who has bounced around the league — to be smart with the ball and Derrick Henry to grind out tough yards. And they relied on a defense that’s been stout against the run all year.

It worked for 37 minutes — and then it unraveled.

Henry finished with 109 yards on 30 carries. Dobbs completed 20 of 29 passes for 179 yards, with a touchdown, an interception and a fumble.

Lawrence completed 20 of 32 passes for 212 yards, with a touchdown and a fumble. Lawrence had two would-be touchdowns in the second half fall incomplete. He overthrew Zay Jones in the end zone and underthrew Christian Kirk.

LIVE UPDATES:

FINAL SCORE: Jacksonville Jaguars beat Tennessee Titans 20-16

11:06 p.m.: The Jaguars begin the kneel down with the Titans only possessing one timeout left.

10:53 p.m.: Jaguars score a touchdown. Titans 16, Jaguars 20

10:22 p.m.: Jaguars score a touchdown. Titans 16, Jaguars 13

10:09 p.m.:

9:52 pm.: Titans score a field goal. Titans 16, Jaguars 10

9:52 p.m.: Jaguars score a field goal. Titans 13, Jaguars 10

HALF TIME: Titans lead the Jaguars 13-7

9:27 p.m.: Titans score a touchdown. Titans 13, Jaguars 7

9:08 p.m.: Jaguars score a touchdown and field goal. Titans 10, Jaguars 7

9:02 p.m.: Titans score a field goal. Titans 10, Jaguars 0

9:00 p.m.: Titans score a touchdown. Titans 9, Jaguars 0

8:54 p.m.:

8:39 p.m.: Titans score a touchdown. Titans 3, Jaguars 0

8:18 p.m.: Kickoff! The Titans start the game.

Game Day Giveaways:

- The first 60 thousand fans to enter the gates will receive a teal rally towel with the phrase, “It was always the Jags,” inscribed on it.

- Fan appreciation will be shown by three full-section prize giveaways, in addition to the First DUUUVAL being delivered by Tyler Derby, the 2022 Jaguars Fan of The Year, before the National Anthem.

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Stadium Policy Reminders:

- The NFL bag policy is in effect inside the stadium. Clear bags should be no bigger than 12 inches by 6 inches, and non-clear bags need to be 4.5 inches by 6.5 inches.

- Mobile Tickets: Fans should download their tickets and have it ready to be scanned at the entrances. You can also download the Official Jaguars Mobile App.

- Cash Policy: All transactions are cashless inside the stadium. Customers can use payment options including JagsPay, Apple, Google or Samsung Pay, in addition to debit and credit cards.

- Smoking Policy: TIAA Bank Field is a smoke-free facility and all tobacco products, including electronic cigarettes, are not allowed. Guest re-entry will not be permitted.

Transportation options:

There are several transportation options available for you to take advantage of. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is expecting more than 70,000 people to be in the Sports Complex area Saturday for the Jags game and for the Icemen game at Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena. We’re told the traffic patterns for this game will remain the same as the last few games. There are several options you have if you don’t want to drive around the stadium, including the St. Johns River taxi, and JTA Gameday Xpress.

If you plan to park the Jaguars say you will need a valid parking pass to enter the parking lots operated by the team and ASM. Vehicles not displaying a valid parking pass will be towed at the owner’s expense.

There are other parking options available near the stadium like the Sports Complex Garage, The Jacksonville Fairgrounds and the Tailgaters Parking Lot.

-Sports Complex Garage Passes can be purchased on a single-game basis here. The garage is located near the Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena. Please note that tailgating is prohibited in this garage.

-The Jacksonville Fairgrounds, located on the west side of the stadium, can be reached at (904) 353-0535 or www.jacksonvillefair.com.

-For information on the Tailgaters Parking Lot on the east side of the stadium, please call (904) 353-1126 or visit www.tailgatersparking.com.

Halftime Celebration:

Saturday’s game not only marks the 30th home prime-time game, but also the last home game of the season. To celebrate the season and light up Jacksonville, fireworks will be on display for the Halftime celebration.

For more information about game day procedures click here.

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