‘Everybody knew the assignment’: Jaguars exorcise another demon, rout Texans 31-3 on the road

HOUSTON — The Jacksonville Jaguars are coming together at the right time, playing complementary, 60-minute football as the regular season draws to a close.

It didn’t take long before that became evident for a fourth-straight week as the Jaguars dominated the Houston Texans on the road en route to a 31-3 victory, a game that was never really close.

The Jacksonville defense dominated the contest, at least defensively, for the entirety of the game. In the span of one minute during the second quarter, the Jaguars scored twice — once on defense and once on offense.

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Not long after Jaguars running back Travis Etienne scored on a 61-yard scamper, Jacksonville’s defense began thinking about scoring a TD of its own.

Jaguars outside linebacker Josh Allen stripped Texans QB Davis Mills as he was set to get rid of the football. Cornerback Tyson Campbell quickly scooped up the ball, running 12 yards for the TD. The Jaguars were suddenly up 21-0. Just like that.

“It was lit. We were literally just talking about who [is] gonna score on defense right before we went out there,” Allen said of Campbell’s first-ever touchdown.

Those two sets of plays encapsulate the Jaguars as of right now. A team that is clicking and firing on all cylinders for all three phases of the franchise. The team that lost five in a row, four by single digits, has now won four in a row, with three being in the blow-out or dominating variety.

“Honestly, [the entire team is] just really starting to gel. Offense, defense, and special teams. I just think it’s amazing to see everyone coming together,” Jaguars defensive lineman Foley Fatukasi said Sunday. “We’re sticking together. We’ve been through some tough times … but, hey, we still got some season left.”

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The Jaguars allowed just 277 total net yards to the Texans, including 193 total net passing yards and 84 total net rushing yards. It was the fourth-fewest yards allowed by Jacksonville this season. Two of the four standout defensive performances have come against the Texans this year.

The game wasn’t great for the Jaguars’ offense, either. The team mustered just 181 total passing yards and 169 rushing yards, including 108 rushing yards for Etienne. Still, they won.

Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson, left, visits with Houston Texans head coach Lovie Smith, right, before an NFL football game in Houston, Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Jaguars entered the game with plenty of purpose

Narratives were made prior to this week’s contest about the team resting starters, and that the game was meaningless.

Not to the Jaguars, though. This team understood what was at stake. They had a chance to gain momentum heading into the most important game of the season, while also exacting revenge against a Texans team that defeated them in Week 5.

Plus, it was another game on the schedule, and that meant everything.

“It’s an important game. It’s a game that’s being played. Those guys put in a great amount of work. We put in a great amount of work and we all come on Sunday to compete for the ultimate stat, which is a win,” Fatukasi said.

The Jaguars needed a win. The team’s mindset heading into the final stretch of the season has been the same for weeks now.

“If we didn’t win these games, we wouldn’t be in a position to do this next week. For us that pressure or whatever you want to call it has been there, and we’ve responded great to it,” Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said in postgame.

“And now that this moment, we talked a lot about a few weeks ago, this season is going to come down to Week 18.”

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) and guard Brandon Scherff (68) celebrate a touchdown against the Houston Texans during the first half of an NFL football game in Houston, Sunday, Jan. 1, 2023. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

That mentality has been the same for several weeks now in Jacksonville.

After a five-game losing streak, it would have been easy to throw in the towel, Jaguars tight end Evan Engram said Sunday. They didn’t and haven’t, though.

“I’ve been through that before and it’s killed the season,” said Engram, who had never won more than six games in a season until this year with the Jaguars. “It’s killed morale. It’s killed young players’ drive to continue to work and we have a young team and I’ve never sensed that. Never felt that in our locker room.

“So just being on both sides of it makes it real special to me because I’ve seen what it can do to a season and that didn’t happen here.”

Engram caught one pass for 16 yards on Sunday. With 739 receiving yards this season, he set a franchise record for most receiving touchdowns by a Jaguars TE, surpassing Kyle Brady (729).

It isn’t just Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson that’s made the difference, Engram said. It’s top-down.

“Everybody has a role.”

The sense of togetherness that something that Fatukasi called “beautiful,” when asked about it after the game. The fact that there was no division in the locker room during that stretch is rare.

“We found a way to stay together and make things happen.”

Still, the team cannot be content with where they’re at now, he added.

Opportunity awaits in Week 18

With Jacksonville’s victory over the Texans, the team will look toward Week 18 and an opportunity to win the division by defeating a reeling Tennessee Titans team.

The game will be held Saturday in Jacksonville at 8:15 p.m.

A game with this kind of meaning is something that the majority of the Jaguars’ locker room has never had an opportunity to accomplish in their career.

That’s exciting.

“I’ve never been in this position in my career. But it’s what you work for. Like, it’s literally what you work for,” Engram said when asked about everything being on the line next week. “We’re going to continue to work, we’re going to continue to attack. Duval is very excited. I cannot wait to see them in ‘The Bank.'”

The Jaguars are now alone in first place at 8-8 with the Titans at 7-9 this year. Still, in order to punch a ticket into the playoffs, Jacksonville will need to defeat their long-time rival, which would own the tiebreaker if they win.

The Jaguars understand the job isn’t finished, and next week, they’ll be ready.

They’ll start by creating their own momentum, which linebacker Foye Oluokun says starts at the first team lift on Monday.

“We have to create that ourselves.”

Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on Twitter at @Demetrius82.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars take care of business, rout Texans 31-3 to continue playoff push