Ameer Abdullah saves Jaguars with last-second kick return to set up game-winning field goal to beat Eagles
The Jaguars needed a miracle to pull off a win in Week 5 ... and Ameer Abdullah delivered.
The Jacksonville Jaguars had multiple advantages coming into Week 5. The team was not only playing in London, which is essentially a second home for the franchise, but it was also taking on an injury-riddled Philadelphia Eagles team without multiple offensive playmakers. Despite that, the Jaguars nearly blew the game many times Sunday. While some of the team's struggles were due to a tough Eagles defense — led by lineman Jalen Carter — most of it was self-inflicted, with poor play calls and untimely penalties threatening to sink the Jaguars. In the end, the team needed a miracle … and Ameer Abdullah delivered it. After the Jaguars gave up a go-ahead field goal with just eight seconds to go, Adbullah nearly scored on the ensuing kick return. While he didn't get into the end zone, he got the team into field-goal position, at the 39-yard line, with one second left on the clock. Cam Little got a shot to win the game from 57 yards out and converted, giving the Jaguars the 19-17 win. Jacksonville had to use Davon Hamilton as a backup long snapper after All-Pro starter Ross Matiscik left with a shoulder injury. Two of Hamilton's previous snaps were high, including one that caused Little to push an extra-point attempt wide late in the fourth quarter. He was clean on the game-winner.It was nearly a much different story. The Jaguars had two goal-line drives completely stall thanks to bad play-calls and penalties. Prior to halftime, the team failed to convert from close in after a near fumble, an incomplete pass that luckily left a second on the clock and a fourth-down stop kept the Jags out of the end zone. Late in the contest, with Jacksonville trailing 14-10, the Jaguars found themselves again on the goal line, but multiple false starts pushed the team from the 1-yard line all the way back to the 14. Lawrence couldn't connect on fourth down, and it looked like the Jaguars' chance at a win had slipped away.But Parker Washington had other ideas. After a stop, the Jaguars took over again and the wideout made another huge play — a one-handed grab — to score a touchdown and put the team up 16-14. A missed extra point, however, opened the door for the Eagles to take a lead with a field goal. The Jaguars' defense responded with a stop, but after more questionable play-calling by the Jaguars, the team was unable to run out the clock, giving the ball back to the Eagles with roughly 90 seconds to go. Philadelphia was able to convert, kicking a go-ahead field goal with 12 seconds to play.That's when Abdullah struck, returning the kickoff 53 yards to the Eagles 39-yard line, saving the Jaguars from an embarrassing loss with literally a second left on the clock.
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