NFL Week 14: Daniel Jones hurt in Jaguars' 11th consecutive home win against the Colts
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Trevor Lawrence threw two touchdown passes, Travis Etienne ran for two scores and the Jacksonville Jaguars moved atop the AFC South with a 36-19 victory against rival Indianapolis on Sunday.
The Jaguars (9-4) won their fourth consecutive game and extended the Colts’ misery in Jacksonville. Indianapolis (8-5) most recently won at EverBank Stadium in 2014, an 11-game skid that includes a matchup in London.
This latest one could have a lasting impact.
Colts quarterback Daniel Jones injured his right Achilles tendon in the second quarter and could be out for the season. The injury often includes a nine-month rehab, meaning Jones could be one-and-done in Indy and the Colts could be looking for a starting quarterback in March.
"It sucks ... for Daniel Jones, everything changes right now."@BMac_SportsTalk reacts to Daniel Jones' achilles injury vs the Jaguars. pic.twitter.com/sU68JfXQX6
— NFL on CBS ???? (@NFLonCBS) December 7, 2025
Jones dropped to the ground after throwing incomplete and immediately grabbed the back of his right leg. He slammed his helmet to the ground several times before team trainers arrived. He eventually limped off the field and into the locker room for tests. The Colts quickly ruled him out.
Jacksonville led 14-7 at that point, and the Colts never threatened with backup Riley Leonard in the game. The only other quarterback on Indy’s roster is Brett Rypien, who is on the practice squad.
Indy lost its third in a row and fourth in five games, a late-season slump that allowed Jacksonville and potentially Houston to move ahead in the division. Now, with Jones hurt and a daunting schedule down the stretch, it’s fair to wonder whether the Colts win again.
The Jaguars, meanwhile, keep winning and gaining confidence.
Lawrence completed 17 of 30 passes for 244 yards, with no turnovers. He connected with Jakobi Meyers and Tim Patrick for TDs.
Three of Lawrence’s completions gained at least 30 yards. Brian Thomas Jr. had his best game in nearly two months, finishing with three receptions for 87 yards. Etienne ran 20 times for 74 yards, scoring on runs of 3 and 28 yards.
Josh Hines-Allen had a sack for the fourth consecutive game, this one resulting in a safety.
Indy’s Jonathan Taylor gained 74 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries against the NFL’s stingiest run defense. Leonard completed 18 of 29 passes for 145 yards and an interception. He ran for a score late.
Saints 24, Buccaneers 20
TAMPA, Fla. — Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough ran for two touchdowns and the New Orleans Saints upset the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-20 on Sunday to tighten the NFC South race.
The lowly Saints (3-10), who were 8 1/2-point underdogs, frustrated Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers (7-6) in a sloppy game mostly played through a driving storm.
The four-time defending division champion Bucs lost for the fourth time in five games and fell into a first-place tie with Carolina. The Bucs and Panthers face off twice in the final three games.
After Chris Godwin Jr. couldn’t hold onto Mayfield’s pass on fourth-and-2 from the Saints 47, New Orleans drove for the go-ahead score.
Shough spun away from Logan Hall and Vita Vea in the backfield and scrambled 13 yards for a touchdown and a 24-17 lead near the midpoint of the fourth quarter.
The Buccaneers had a chance to tie it but Emeka Egbuka dropped Mayfield’s pass in the end zone, and they settled for a 37-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin that cut the deficit to 24-20 with under five minutes remaining.
The Bucs had another chance in the final two minutes but Mayfield ran out of his early-season magic.
First, Deion Jones dropped a potential interception that would’ve set Tampa Bay up near its own 40. Instead, the Bucs got the ball after a punt at their 20 with 1:48 remaining and no timeouts.
Mayfield threw two incomplete passes, ran for 7 yards and threw a 2-yard pass to Cade Otton.
Shough finished with 144 yards passing and 55 rushing with one pick.
Mayfield had 122 yards passing on a 14-of-30 afternoon with one interception.
Shough’s 34-yard TD run on the opening drive of the second half was his career score on the ground. It gave New Orleans a 14-10 lead.
Helped by a 29-yard pass-interference penalty on Jonas Sanker that wiped out an incomplete pass to Tez Johnson on third-and-10, the Buccaneers reclaimed the lead a few plays later.
Rachaad White ran 11, 7 and 5 yards. Then Sean Tucker ran for 13 yards and scored from the 1 to make it 17-14.
Dolphins 34, Jets 10
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Tua Tagovailoa remained unbeaten against the New York Jets and put his cold weather woes on ice, and the Miami Dolphins had three rushing touchdowns to run away with a 34-10 victory Sunday.
With Miami’s fourth straight win, Tagovailoa improved to 7-0 against the Jets as a starter and 8-0 overall in games in which he has played against the AFC East rivals. And with the temperature 41 degrees at kickoff, Tagovailoa moved to 1-7 in his career when the temperature is 46 or colder.
De’Von Achane ran for 92 yards and a touchdown before leaving in the second quarter with a rib injury. Jaylen Wright filled in and had a career-high 107 yards and a score. Rookie Ollie Gordon II also ran for a TD for Miami (6-7), which ran for 239 yards and has won five of its last six after starting the season 1-6.
Tagovailoa was 13 of 21 for 127 yards with a touchdown pass to Jaylen Waddle before sitting for the final minutes with the game well in hand. Zach Wilson, New York’s No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 draft, finished up for Miami.
Zach Sieler had 2 1/2 of the Dolphins’ six sacks of the Jets (3-10), who were officially eliminated from playoff contention with the loss. It’s the 15th straight year — the NFL’s longest active drought — without a postseason appearance for New York.
Undrafted rookie quarterback Brady Cook made his regular-season NFL debut for the Jets when he replaced the injured Tyrod Taylor with 3:39 remaining in the first quarter. Taylor left with what the team announced was a groin injury.
Cook, who was Taylor’s backup because Justin Fields was ruled out with knee soreness, was 14 of 30 for 163 yards and two interceptions. Taylor was 1 for 4 for 6 yards and an interception before leaving.
The immediate concern for the Dolphins after the game was Achane, who was slow to walk off the field after a 29-yard run late in the second quarter.
Seahawks 37, Falcons 9
ATLANTA — Rashid Shaheed returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, Seattle’s defense came up with three turnovers and the Seahawks won for the seventh time in eight games, beating the hapless Atlanta Falcons 37-9 on Sunday.
Sam Darnold threw for 249 yards and three touchdowns, including a pair of scores to Jaxon Smith-Njigba and another to Cooper Kupp. The Seahawks (10-3) broke away from a 6-6 tie at halftime with a 31-point beatdown of the Falcons over the final two quarters.
With their seventh loss in eight games, the Falcons (4-9) sealed an eighth straight losing campaign — matching the worst stretch in franchise history — and were officially eliminated from playoff contention with a month still to go in the regular season.
Atlanta hasn’t made the postseason since 2017, a year after its infamous Super Bowl meltdown to Tom Brady and the Patriots.
Seattle is a team with soaring expectations, coming into the day as one of three NFC West teams with nine wins and its sights on a division title, maybe even a top seed in January.
Shaheed sparked the second-half outburst on the very first play after the break, marking the second week in a row that Atlanta has given up a huge kickoff return.
Shaheed took the kick at his own goal line, found a seam and was barely touched on his way to the other end of the field for the longest touchdown of the NFL season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. It also was the longest return for the Seahawks since Tyler Lockett had a 105-yarder against Chicago in 2015.
That wasn’t the only miscue on another awful day for Atlanta’s special teams.
After an interception by Mike Hughes gave Atlanta the ball in Seattle territory, the home team came away with no points. Zane Gonzalez’s 50-yard field goal attempt was swatted away by Nick Emmanwori, who streaked in off the edge without being blocked.
The Seattle defense forced a fumble by Bijan Robinson when the Falcons were driving for a potential tying touchdown in the third quarter. DeMarcus Lawrence knocked the ball away and Devon Witherspoon scooped it up at the Seahawks 12.
On Atlanta’s next possession, Kirk Cousins’ pass for Kyle Pitts was deflected and picked off by Emmanwori, his first career pick, Devon Witherspoon had another pick on a wacky play when the ball ricocheted high in the air on a short throw by Cousins.
The Seahawks were bolstered on the defensive side by the return of safety Julian Love and tackle Jarran Reed from injured reserve, making the first time all season that unit was at full strength.
Love played for the first time since a Week 4 win over the Arizona Cardinals after being sidelined with a hamstring ailment. Reed had missed the last four games with wrist and thumb injuries that required surgery.
Vikings 31, Commanders 0
MINNEAPOLIS — J.J. McCarthy threw a career-high three touchdown passes in his first turnover-free game, returning from his latest injury absence in prime form for the Minnesota Vikings in a 31-0 victory on Sunday that sent the Washington Commanders to their eighth straight loss.
McCarthy went 16 for 23 for 163 yards in his seventh NFL start, after sitting out last week in Seattle with a concussion while the Vikings were shut out for the first time in 18 years and dropped their fourth consecutive game with the offense in disrepair.
McCarthy, who missed his entire rookie season after knee surgery and five games earlier this season with a sprained ankle, targeted his tight ends for all three scores — the first two to Josh Oliver and the last one to T.J. Hockenson.
As smooth as the afternoon went for the Vikings (5-8), the return of the starting quarterback for the Commanders (3-10) produced nothing positive — only pain.
Jayden Daniels, the 2024 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award winner, was forced out midway through the third quarter when he was blocked during an interception return and landed hard on the left elbow he dislocated last month to require a three-game absence. Daniels missed three games to injury earlier this season, too.
Marcus Mariota, who is 1-5 as the starter this season, threw an interception and lost a fumble as the Vikings finally enjoyed a stellar performance from every position group after stumbling badly through November to fall out of realistic contention for the playoffs.
McCarthy, who took four sacks and faced plenty of pressure, looked like a seasoned pro from the start. The Vikings scored on a seven-play, 61-yard drive from the opening kickoff and then stopped the Commanders on fourth-and-goal from the 2 when Deebo Samuel stumbled in the back of the end zone and failed to hang on to the throw from Daniels — the third straight incompletion.
Then McCarthy directed a 19-play, 98-yard drive that drained 12:01 off the clock, converting five third downs — including three with 6 yards or longer to go.
Jordan Mason capped the possession with a touchdown run, as the Vikings leaned on him and Aaron Jones to gain 162 yards on 34 rushes.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.
