The Jacksonville Jaguars played their final home game of the 2018 season hosting the Washington Redskins.
The final home game ended during the regular season.
At the start of the season, Jaguars fans would not have predicted the game hosting the Redskins being their final home game. NFL pundits moreover the Jaguar players who realized they were ten minutes away from a trip to the Super Bowl could not have predicted this disappointing season.
Dustin Hopkins connected on a 36-yard field goal, ending Washington’s four-game losing streak and keeping them on the fringe of the NFC playoff picture, defeating the Jaguars 16-13.
The Jaguars did not look like the playoff team many predicted them to be for another game.
Cody Kessler started his third straight game for the benched Blake Bortles. Kessler fumbled the football after a strip sack in their opening drive. It has been that type of season for Jacksonville.
“It is tough offensively when you can’t score back to back to back consistently with plays or big plays,” Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone stated.
The Jaguars (4-10) have dropped nine of 10, raising more questions about the future of coach Marrone.
Jacksonville managed 192 yards, another anemic performance under Marrone. The Jags now have double-digit losses for the seventh time in the last eight years.
I thought the Jaguars defense was back when they shut out the Colts in a 6-0 victory that ended a seven-game losing streak two weeks ago. But the next Thursday night, they were dismantled by the Tennessee Titans 30-9 as Derrick Henry ran for a Titans record 238 yards and four touchdowns.
Kessler was 9 of 17 passing for 57 yards with an interception in his third start since replacing Bortles. He has directed one touchdown drive in 31 possessions. Jaguars have a quarterback problem. Marrone has emphasized Kessler will remain the starter unless Bortles is hurt.
The Redskins have two games remaining in a fight for the NFC title and playoff chances. Running back, Adrian Peterson along with Josh Johnson who made his first NFL start since 2011 led the way in driving the team down the field and setting Hopkins up for the game-winning field goal.
“It was a situation where it was do or die,” Peterson said. “It was not that serious, but obviously for our season and what we’re trying to accomplish, we needed this W to get out of this funk by any means necessary. One point, two points, we didn’t care.”
The Redskins (7-7) entered the game losers of four in a row as injuries have ravaged the team, especially at the quarterback position. Alex Smith and Colt McCoy suffered season-ending injuries, and Mark Sanchez was ineffective, Johnson became the fourth quarterback to start a game this season for the Redskins.
Jaguars finish 3-5 at home this season.
The beat goes on as the Redskins stay in the AFC South and play at Tennessee on Saturday. The Jaguars travel south to play at Miami next Sunday.
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