BALTIMORE — Trevor Lawrence threw for 242 yards and a touchdown, the Jacksonville Jaguars defense forced three turnovers, and Jacksonville pulled away from the Baltimore Ravens 33-10 Thursday night at M&T Bank Stadium before a crowd of 70,007, extending the Jaguars’ AFC South lead to three-and-a-half games.
The Jaguars (6-2) won their first Thursday night game in three seasons and their second consecutive game, while the Ravens fell to 4-5 with their fourth straight loss. Jacksonville now leads the Houston Texans (2-5) by three-and-a-half games in the AFC South.
“Good to get a win,” Lawrence said after the game. Head Coach Liam Coen called it a “businesslike” performance. “I was extremely proud of their process throughout the week that led us to this point,” Coen said of his team’s effort in a steady Baltimore rain.
Running back Bhayshul Tuten capped the game’s opening drive with a 1-yard touchdown run, finishing a seven-play, 77-yard march that gave Jacksonville a 7-0 lead it would never relinquish. Lawrence’s 52-yard pass to tight end Nate Boerkircher on the game’s second play from scrimmage set up the score. Lawrence then connected with wide receiver Parker Washington on a 50-yard touchdown pass late in the second quarter, pushing the lead to 17-3 at halftime. “Huge,” Coen said of the Washington touchdown. “To go up 17-3 at the half I thought was really critical.”
Lawrence finished 16 of 26 passes and now has 18 touchdown passes against four interceptions on the season. Coen credited his quarterback’s composure in the wet conditions. “He was extremely sharp, accurate and played a really solid football game,” Coen said. Opposing him was Ravens rookie free agent Joe Fagnano, making his first NFL start, who completed just 10 of 18 passes for 60 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Jacksonville defense held Baltimore to 10 or fewer points for the second consecutive game and has surrendered just 17 total points across two games since the Week 7 bye. The unit has now held opponents to 10 or fewer points in four of eight games this season and 20 or fewer in six. Cornerback Montaric Brown’s interception in the third quarter led to a 45-yard field goal by kicker Ryan Little, and cornerback Jourdan Lewis’ fourth-quarter interception set up a 33-yard Little field goal. Middle linebacker Foyesade Oluokun recorded the Jaguars’ lone sack. “Very pleased with the way the defense played today,” Coen said.
“It feels good to win at home, but it may feel a little better to win in somebody else’s home,” said defensive end Josh Hines-Allen. “We have a lot of away games the rest of the season. If we can kind of continue to focus on ourselves and our brand of football, we’ll be where we need to be. A great team win today.”
The Jaguars return to action next week with their AFC South lead intact and four of their remaining eight games on the road.