Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars steamroll Denver defense to snap 11-game Broncos win streak, put No. 1 seed in AFC up for grabs

The Denver Broncos rolled into Week 16 against the Jacksonville Jaguars riding an 11-game win streak with visions of clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.

The Jaguars had other ideas. Sparked by another big game from quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the Jaguars steamrolled the vaunted Broncos’ defense in Denver to secure a 34-20 win.

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With the win, the Jaguars improve to 11-4 while turning the race for the No. 1 seed in the AFC into a five-team contest. The Broncos drop to 12-3, while the 11-4 Chargers, 11-4 Bills and 11-3 Patriots (ahead of Sunday night’s game against the Ravens) all remain in the race for the first-round bye in the AFC playoff bracket.

Another big game from Trevor Lawrence

Lawrence led the way while completing 23 of 36 passes for for 279 yards with 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. He added 20 yards and a fourth touchdown on the ground.

This, a week after Lawrence led a 48-20 romp over the Jets with 330 passing yards, 5 touchdowns and no turnovers. But that was against the Jets.

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Sunday was against a Super Bowl-contending Broncos team with one of the best defenses in football. And if you weren’t counting the Jaguars among Super Bowl contenders before, it’s time to reconsider that stance.

Jaguars break tight game open after halftime

The early portion of Sunday’s contest was a back-and-forth affair that saw the Broncos tie the game at 17-17 early in the third quarter. But the tenor of the game took a dramatic shift on Jacksonville’s first possession of the second half.

Sparked by a pair of big penalties, the Jaguars drove 75 yards for a touchdown. A roughing the passing penalty for bodyweight on a hit of Lawrence on first down moved the Jaguars across midfield and riled up the raucous Denver crowd.

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Then in the red zone on second down, the Broncos got flagged for pass interference in the end zone when Jahdae Barron grabbed Parker Washington’s arm while the ball was in the air. This brought the home crowd into a frenzy.

Lawrence responded by running untouched into the end zone for 24-7 lead Jaguars lead.

And the Jaguars never relinquished control. Now they’re in the mix for the No. 1 seed.

Even with the loss, the Broncos maintain control of that No. 1 seed. Their 12-3 record remains alone atop the AFC. And they hold the tiebreaker over the Patriots if the Patriots win Sunday night. But with two weeks remaining in the season, the race for that No. 1 seed is anything but settled.