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The Jacksonville Jaguars came from behind to ease the pressure on under-fire coach Doug Pederson with a 32-16 win over the New England Patriots in London.
The Jaguars came into the game at Wembley with a 1-5 record after suffering a dismal defeat across town at Tottenham last Sunday.
The Patriots were also 1-5 and a record London crowd of 86,651 watched the six-time Super Bowl winners race into a 10-0 lead in the last of this season's three NFL games in the UK.
But quarterback Trevor Lawrence led the Jags to a morale-boosting fightback, with touchdowns by Brian Thomas Jr and Tank Bigsby putting them in front.
Parker Washington then scored a stunning 96-yard punt return less than two minutes before half-time and the Jags added a two-point conversion to give themselves a 22-10 lead.
The Patriots are in the midst of a major rebuild after legendary coach Bill Belichick left at the end of last season and claimed their second touchdown in the fourth quarter.
But Bigsby ran in his second score at the death to ensure the Jags and Pederson will return to the US in high spirits.
The Jaguars have played in each London series since 2013 and this is the second year running they have played two games in the English capital.
Last year they won both to spark a five-game winning streak, but last week’s return to London did not provide the same boost as Lawrence was upstaged by this year’s number one draft pick, Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams.
This week Lawrence, 25, faced the man selected third in this year’s draft, with Drake Maye making just his second NFL start for the Patriots.
And this time Lawrence came out on top, showing why he was considered a generational talent when he was the number one draft pick in 2021.
After the Patriots scored on their opening two possessions, Lawrence made a 24-yard pass down the middle to Christian Kirk before finding Thomas Jr to cap a 68-yard drive.
Lawrence earned a five-year contract extension worth $275m (£216m) in the off-season and he showcased his arm strength by going long towards Thomas Jr, who plucked it out of the air for a 58-yard reception, and Bigsby punched the ball in to round off an 82-yard drive.
After forcing the Pats to punt, Washington then burst through the middle and streaked past the last defender down the sideline to claim a thrilling score and put the Jags in charge.
They opted against going for a field goal after a mammoth 11-minute drive during the second half.
But Bigsby’s late touchdown leaves the Jags hoping to get back into play-off contention after a late-season collapse saw them miss out last term.
More to follow.
English (US)