Travis Etienne rushed for two fourth-quarter touchdowns as the Jacksonville Jaguars move to 3-2 by beating the Buffalo Bills 25-20 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, adding to their victory over the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley a week earlier
Sunday 8 October 2023 21:54, UK
The Jacksonville Jaguars weathered a raucous atmosphere as they fended off the Buffalo Bills and a magnificent travelling fan base 25-20 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to make it two wins from two at the end of a historic fortnight in London.
Travis Etienne rushed for two fourth-quarter touchdowns including a stunning 35-yard burst, before Josh Allen's rushing score threatened late drama to cut the lead to five.
Doug Pederson's side would hold on to become the first team to play and win back-to-back regular season games outside of the United States, following on from their victory over the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium seven days earlier.
A duel of stubborn defense saw Jags cornerback Darious Williams snag a spectacular interception on a Josh Allen deep-shot, while AJ Epenesa twice sacked Lawrence including a strip-sack-and-recovery to deny Jacksonville in their efforts to extend an early advantage.
The fresher-looking Jags led first through a Zay Jones touchdown as the Bills offense stuttered before Allen connected with Stefon Diggs to close the gap to 11-7 at the break.
Etienne finished with 26 carries for 136 yards and two scores, while Trevor Lawrence went 25 of 37 passing for 315 yards - of which 122 went to Calvin Ridley - and a touchdown.
The Bills sought to ignite a comeback on the third drive of the second half when Allen launched deep in the direction of a waiting Diggs for a 48-yard completion, only for the drive to stall on third-and-10 moments later.
Lawrence then lost a fumble under a sack from Ed Oliver at the Bills' 24 to derail a 17-play drive in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter.
With momentum threatening to swing Allen launched deep in search of Diggs on a post-route, the Bills star receiver heavily-favoured to haul in the catch before instead seeing the ball snatched out of the air by a covering Williams.
The reply was emphatic, the Jags marching downfield on a 10-play 93-yard drive lasting five minutes and ending in Etienne scurrying around the outside for a six-yard score to make it 18-7 after the extra point.
Allen issued an immediate response with a 19-yard touchdown strike to Gabe Davis, who had been denied a score seconds earlier for offensive pass interference. The Bills, though, failed to convert the two-point attempt to find themselves trailing 18-13 with four to play.
Etienne thought he had called game for good with three minutes to play when he raced away for a 35-yard touchdown, after which Allen ran in from three yards out in a case of too-little-too-late as Lawrence flipped the field to find Ridley and guide the Jags into victory formation territory.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Buffalo Bills
Jones had opened the scoring for the Jaguars when he rose high to tame a Lawrence dart at the back of the end zone for a six-yard touchdown, with Etienne scampering to his right to convert the two-point attempt for a lead of eight.
Having forced the first of four first half punts from the Bills, the Jags extended their lead through a 44-yard field goal from Brandon McManus after twice converting on third down amid a nine-play drive.
The Bills continued to stutter on offense until Allen ignited a late drive with a 19-yard toss to Deonte Harty for a gain of 19 on third-and-six, before an 18-yard catch-and-run lifted Buffalo into Jags territory. An 11-play 86-yard drive was eventually rewarded by Diggs' 15-yard touchdown catch as the Bills made it a four-point game.
Lawrence threatened to orchestrate an immediate sucker-punch in reply when he connected with Etienne and Ridley for respective gains of 22 and 16. Upon reaching the Bills' 12-yard line with 17 seconds to play, Lawrence was strip-sacked by Epenesa, who recovered the fumble to blunt the Jags on third-and-two and bring the half to a close.
The Bills notably lost star linebacker Matt Milano to a knee injury in the first quarter, head coach Sean McDermott stating afterwards it was "not looking good".
Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson: "We as a team, I think, are figuring out that we're very capable of winning these types of games. It's big. We came over here 1-2 and we're going back 3-2."
Bills quarterback Josh Allen: "We didn't take care of the little things. That's on us captains, making sure that this team is ready to go. You know, the opposing team, they were ready to go today. We weren't."
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence: "We knew what kind of game it was going to be. They're a great team. It's going to be a four-quarter game no matter how it starts."
The Jaguars are back in action at home next weekend when they face the Indianapolis Colts, while the Bills host the New York Giants.
