2024-09-24 11:05:03
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – This was rough, rollicking and one-sided.
Really rough and really one-sided.
The Jaguars were outplayed in a big, big way early and never recovered in their 2024 prime time debut, with the Buffalo Bills scoring touchdowns on all five first-half possessions in a 47-10 victory in front of a raucous crowd at Highmark Stadium on Monday Night Football.
“We’re frustrated – and a little bit stunned, to be honest,” quarterback Trevor Lawrence said, adding, “Disappointed would be an understatement.”
Head Coach Doug Pederson called the loss “real shocking” and “very disappointing.”
“The reality of it is this is who we are,” Pederson said. “We’re not a very good football team. We have to get it fixed, we have to come up with some answers and we have to do it in a hurry.”
Bills quarterback Josh Allen threw four touchdown passes – all in the first half – and Buffalo scored on its first six possessions with the Jaguars never within double digits after the first quarter.
The Jaguars have lost eight of nine games dating to last season.
“The main thing is winning the football game,” wide receiver Christian Kirk said, “and we are just not winning the football games – nor are we putting ourselves in a position to win the football game.
“The most important thing right now is just winning a football game.”
The Bills led 13-0 after the first quarter and 34-3 at halftime. They out-gained the Jaguars 140-19 in the first quarter and 288-70 in the first half.
Lawrence completed 21 of 38 passes for 178 yards and one touchdown with one interception. Bills safety Damar Hamlin’s second-quarter interception marked Lawrence’s first turnover of the season and led to a Bills touchdown that gave them 24-point lead late in the first half.
“Players play, coaches coach – and when we step on the field, we have to make plays,” Lawrence said. “We have to take all the accountability, all the criticism, all the scrutiny. That’s our job, to go make the plays. We’re not doing that right now.”
Allen completed 23 of 30 passes for 263 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions. Buffalo fans chanted “MVP, MVP, MVP” after multiple Bills second-quarter touchdowns.
The Bills, the four-time defending AFC East Champions, moved to 3-0. The Jaguars, after finishing 9-8 each of the past two seasons, are 0-3 with a road game against the AFC South-leading Houston Texans (2-1) next Sunday.
The Jaguars did not register a sack or a takeaway Monday. They have not forced a turnover this season.
“It’s a week-to-week deal,” Pederson said. “We’re three weeks in and we’re not very good right now. No one’s going to feel sorry for us. This is who we are right now and it’s not very good. We have to be honest with ourselves and I have to be honest with myself. We have to just keep plugging away.”
