Jaguars Stun the Broncos In Mile High, Enter AFC's Top Tier

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars walked into a massive moment in Sunday's game against the Denver Broncos, and they came out on the other side as one of the AFC's best teams.

The Jaguars extended their winning streak to six games with a massive 34-20 win over the Broncos, snapping the Broncos' 11-game winning streak and 12-game home winning streak in a massive upset.

First Half

The Jaguars' offense struggled to get much going on the opening drive, with the Broncos forcing a three-and-out after a Trevor Lawrence third-down scramble resulted in a Riley Moss sack. After zero sacks allowed a week before, the Jaguars faced clear issues against the Broncos' defense to start the game.

The Broncos' offense got off to a similar start after Logan Cooke pinned them at their own eight-yard line. An RJ Harvey drop and a Garrett Bolles false start led to a third-and-long, and Josh Hines-Allen made a nice tackle in coverage to force a punt after three downs.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars team owner Shahid Khan before the game at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Jaguars set up at their own 41-yard line on their next drive, but the offense struggled to move the ball and Lawrence was sacked on third-down for the second drive in a row to ruin what was quality field position to start the game.

The Broncos then picked up the first two first downs of the game with a 16-yard run to open the drive, but the Jaguars were then put in an interesting spot. After the Jaguars stopped a Bo Nix quarterback sneak on 3rd-and-1, the Broncos went for it on 4th down from their own 39. Their attempt was ruled a success by the referees, but Jaguars head coach Liam Coen then challenged the call and lost the gamble.

Dec 14, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen during the first quarter against the New York Jets at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images | Travis Register-Imagn Images

Nix then hit the first explosive pass plays of the day with two passes to Courtland Sutton that totaled 17 yards, leading to the Broncos moving the ball into Jaguars territory. The Jaguars' defense stiffened after that, though, and forced the Broncos to settle for a 44-yard field goal ... that was then missed by Will Lutz.

The Jaguars finally got some breathing room on the next series, with Lawrence hitting Parker Washington for a 21-yard gain to move the ball to the Broncos' 44-yard line on third-down. After picking up zero yards on the next two plays, the Jaguars picked up some good fortune when the Broncos were flagged for a late hit on Lawrence after a play was blown dead.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) before the game at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

A Lawrence scramble then gave the Jaguars another first down deeper in Broncos territory, and Lawrence then found Washington for a 12-yard touchdown to put the Jaguars on the board with an early 7-0 lead.

The Broncos did not stay down for long, however, with Nix finding ex-Jaguars tight end Evan Engram for a 33-yard gain to get into Jaguars territory early on in the drive. A few plays later, Nix connected with Sutton yet again for a 15-yard touchdown to tie the game at 7-7.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) drops back to pass against the Jacksonville Jaguars during the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Jaguars' next drive was their worst of the game to this point. After a five-yard loss on a first-down swing pass to Travis Etienne, the Jaguars gave up their third sack of the game on 3rd-and-15 and went three-and-out following the first Broncos score.

The Broncos then took their first lead of the game with a 54-field goal from Lutz to go up 10-7, though a Travon Walker tackle for loss on third-down ensured it wasn't anything more than that. The Jaguars' special teams fired back with an impressive play of their own on the next play, though, with DeeJay Dallas returning the kickoff 35 yards to the Jaguars' 41-yard line.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) reacts after making a touchdown catch against the Denver Broncos during the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Lawrence then started heating up from the pocket, hitting Brenton Strange with a big 23-yard gain to set the Jaguars up in scoring position. A few plays later, Etienne broke off his first big run of the day with a 24-yard gain to get the Jaguars to Denver's three-yard line. Two plays later, Lawrence and Strange connected for a three-yard touchdown.

The Jaguars managed to force a Broncos punt on the next drive, leading to the Broncos pinning the Jaguars at their own 13. It did not matter much for a red-hot Lawrence, though, who hit Jakobi Meyers for a 25-yard gain. The Jaguars then set up Cam Little for a 47-yard field goal to take a 17-10 lead into halftime.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Brenton Strange (85) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Second Half

The Jaguars' defense had two physical plays to start the second half, with a first-down run stuff and then a second-down sack by DaVon Hamilton on second-down. However, a Jarrian Jones holding penalty gave the Broncos new life. A few plays later, Antonio Johnson was flagged with a questionable unnecessary roughness flag. On the next play, Harvey scored on a 38-yard touchdown to tie the game.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) during the first half at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Jaguars picked up a pair of first downs to open the next drive, with Lawrence hitting the Broncos with a read-option on 3rd-and-1 before a Malcolm Roach roughing the passer to move the Jaguars past the Broncos' midfield logo. On 3rd-and-9 a few plays later, Lawrence found Washington for a 20-yard gain to get to the Denver 24. One play later, Lawrence hit Tim Patrick for a 10-yard gain.

Lawrence then went to Washington in the end-zone on the next play, and the Broncos were hit with a defensive pass interference to put the Jaguars at the Broncos' 1. On the next play, Lawrence hit the end zone with a one-yard scoring touchdown to give the Jaguars a 24-17 lead.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Referee Shawn Hochuli (83) reacts during the second at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

After the Jaguars got the Broncos off the field on the next drive, the Jaguars saw Washington make one of the biggest plays of the season with a 63-yard catch-and-run to get to the Broncos' 10-yard line. One play later, Lawrence scored his fourth touchdown of the game with a 10-yard pass to Etienne to make it 31-17.

After the Broncos picked up some momentum on the next drive, the Jaguars' defense made their first massive play of the day when Emmanuel Ogbah recovered a fumbled handoff exchange at the Broncos' 34. Facing third-down, Lawrence then hit Washington for a 24-yard gain to get it within the Broncos' 10-yard line.

Trevor Lawrence is 5-of-5 for 140 yards on 3rd down against the Denver Broncos' defense
— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) December 21, 2025

Lawrence seemingly had Jakobi Meyers for a touchdown on the next third-down, but Moss made a terrific play to know it out of Meyers' hands to force a Jaguars field goal and 34-17 lead. The Broncos then threw their counter punch with a 48-yard pass to Troy Franklin to get the ball to the Jaguars' nine-yard line.

The Jaguars allowed a 6-yard completion on first-down, but managed to force two incompletions on the next two plays. Faced with 4th-down from the 3-yard line, the Broncos settled with a field goal to make it 34-20.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Parker Washington (11) makes a catch for a touchdown against the Denver Broncos during the second at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Jaguars' lost some momentum on the following drive, with the Jaguars going three-and-out after yet another third-down sack from the Broncos' defense. On the Broncos' next play, Harvey caught a pass out of the backfield and picked up 32 yards to cross midfield. The Jaguars then forced a 4th-and-2 at their own 41, and Jarrian Jones then made an absolutely massive play by picking Nix off to get the Jaguars the ball back.

The Jaguars then began to bleed the clock on the next drive, with Lawrence picking uo a massive first-down scramble to keep the clock rolling. The Jaguars punted, but the Jaguars took over three minutes off the clock.

Dec 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne (1) rushes the ball against the Denver Broncos during the second at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Broncos then got the ball into Jaguars territory with two completions to Sutton that totaled 35 yards before the Jaguars forced them into a 3rd-and-3. Nix then scrambled out of the pocket and took a sack for seven yards to make it 4th-and-11. On the next play, Nix threw an incompletion and the Jaguars took over with 2:12 left.

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