DENVER, Colo. – The Jaguars did something Sunday they hadn't done in a while.
As a result, they're tied for first place.
Rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew II threw two second-half touchdown passes, and running back Leonard Fournette rushed for a career-high 225 yards – and the Jaguars rallied from a two-touchdown deficit for a 26-24 victory over the Denver Broncos in front of 71,954 at Empower Field at Mile High Sunday afternoon.
"It shows our resilience," Minshew said. We're never going to count ourselves out. We're just going to keep playing when things don't go our way early. It's okay, we have to believe in ourselves.
"No matter what's going on right now, we believe that we can do it. That was a fun thing to see, our guys coming together and leading to a win."
Kicker Josh Lambo's 33-yard field goal with no time remaining provided the winning points, with Minshew leading a dramatic 60-yard drive that began with 1:32 remaining. The Broncos had taken the lead on the previous possession with quarterback Joe Flacco passing eight yards to wide receiver Courtland Sutton.
"We didn't play our best football game by any means, but we found a way to get a win on the road," defensive end Calais Campbell said. "That's huge. This team has a lot of resilience and had a lot of fight in us today."
Minshew keyed the final drive with completions of 32 yards to wide receiver Dede Westbrook and 17 yards to wide receiver Chris Conley.
The victory was the first for the Jaguars in the Pacific/Mountain time zone since a victory in Denver in 2008. They had lost their last 11 such games.
The victory moved the Jaguars into a four-way tie for first place in the AFC South. The Houston Texans, Jaguars, Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts are all 2-2. The Texans lost to the Carolina Panthers Sunday, with the Colts losing to the Oakland Raiders. The Titans beat the Atlanta Falcons.
The Broncos lost for the fourth time in as many games to start the season.
Minshew, making his third NFL start for injured starter Nick Foles (broken clavicle), completed 19 of 33 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. The Broncos sacked Minshew five times, with Von Miller registering two sacks and Bradley Chubb getting one.
Minshew threw two touchdowns as the Jaguars turned a 17-6 halftime deficit into a 20-17 lead entering the fourth quarter. His seven-yard touchdown pass to rookie running back Ryquell Armstead capped a 16-play drive to start the half, and his 18-yard touchdown pass to tight end James O'Shaughnessy gave the Jaguars their first lead of the game with 1:10 remaining in the quarter.
Broncos quarterback Joe Flacco completed 22 of 38 passes for 303 yards and three touchdowns with an interception. The Broncos had 256 yards offense at halftime, but just 115 in the second half.
"It's huge," Campbell said. "To start 0-2 and then find a way to win two tough ball games in a row. You have to stack wins in this league if you want to be successful. We found a way to become 2-2 and the rest of the division is 2-2. We are in a position where we are tied for first place and control our own destiny."
