The Jacksonville Jaguars are used to being heavy underdogs, especially this year. Jacksonville has only scored 51 points the entire season, while the Peyton Manning-led Denver Broncos scored at least that much.....in each of the past two games. Jacksonville comes into this week at 0-5, losing every game by double digits with three of them coming by at least 26. Denver, on the other hand, comes in at 5-0, winning four of them by double figures and has scored 230 points on the season. Denver comes in as a 28-point favorite, which would be the largest point spread in NFL history if it holds.
In the franchise's second year, Jacksonville made the playoffs. Led by quarterback Mark Brunell, Jacksonville made the playoffs with a 9-7 record. At their bye week, the Jaguars had a record of 3-6, but the Jaguars rebounded to win six of their final seven to reach the playoffs. All six of those wins came by one possession. That included a win on the last week of the season against the 3-12 Atlanta Falcons, in which Jacksonville needed to win to reach the playoffs. Atlanta had a 30-yard field goal attempt to take the lead with less than a minute to go by one of the all-time great kickers. Morten Andersen's kick sailed wide left and Jacksonville moved onto the playoffs.
Denver steamrolled through the AFC on its way to a 13-3 record. The Broncos won the division so early that they rested players down the stretch. They started out 12-1, but John Elway missed game 14 due to injury and Denver was destroyed by Green Bay 41-6. With starters being rested, Denver lost the last game to San Diego 16-10. Going into the playoffs, all of their players would be healthy. They thought the divisonal round game would be a tune-up.
Jacksonville came into the Wild Card round as huge underdogs against the Buffalo Bills, led by future Hall of Famers Jim Kelly and Thurman Thomas. The latter claimed he did not know anybody on Jacksonville's team. He certainly would know the name of Jacksonville's runing back Natrone Means by the end of the game. Means rushed for 175 yards and a touchdown to lead the Jaguars, but the game would come down to a kick. Jacksonville's string of good luck continued. Second year kicker Mike Hollis nailed a 45-yard field goal that hit off the upright and went through. Top seeded Denver was next.
In the Rocky Mountain News the day of the game, they were called the "Jagwads." Denver Post columnist Woody Paige gave the Jaguars some bulletin board material, asking "Can we get a legitimate NFL team in here next Sunday?" He also made a remark about "How can people get worked up to play somebody called Jacksonville with a bunch of nobodies?"
Those comments fueled the Jaguars, as Jacksonville prepared to pull one of the biggest upsets in playoff history. Denver came in as 17.5-point favorites over the upstart Jaguars. Nobody gave the team from Florida any chance of coming into Mile High and picking up the win.
The first quarter went as most people thought, with Denver scoring two touchdowns, but missed the first extra point and missed the two point conversion on the second touchdown and Denver led 12-0 after one. But Jacksonville fought back in quarter two and the Jaguars took a 13-12 lead at halftime.
With Jacksonville leading 23-20, the Jaguars had one of the biggest plays in their history to put the game away. Brunell, who they had acquired from Green Bay the previous year in a draft day trade, threw a perfect 15-yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Smith down the left sideline to give Jacksonville a 30-23 lead with 3:39 left in the game. Denver would score one final time, but the onside kick was recovered by the Jaguars and Jacksonville won the game 30-27 to advance to New England and the AFC Championship game.
Jacksonville lost at New England 20-6 the following week, but that does not take away from the magnitude of this win and what it did for the franchise. One can only hope the Jaguars can feel this way again in the coming seasons.
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