Jaguars’ Jamal Agnew returns Cardinals FG attempt 109 yards for TD
Sep 26, 2021, 11:30 AM | Updated: 2:47 pm
Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury trusted the leg of Matt Prater a whole lot after the kicker nailed a 62-yard field goal a week ago.
It bit the Cardinals in a 31-19 Week 3 victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
With two seconds on the second-quarter clock remaining, Prater attempted a 68-yard field goal that came up short. The Jags’ Jamal Agnew caught it nine yards into his own end zone and returned it 109 yards for a kick-six, shedding multiple would-be tacklers on the way.
A 68-YARD FG ATTEMPT TURNS INTO A 109-YARD RETURN TD.
MAYHEM IN JACKSONVILLE.
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Jacksonville missed the extra point but went into the locker room with a 13-7 lead.
“We’re going to be aggressive,” Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury said of the decision to go for the field goal from 68 yards. “(Prater) felt good about it pregame but just unfortunate that it worked out the way it did. You got to give them credit. That was a tremendous run and tremendous play, and we had a shot to get him down and didn’t do it.
“The ball carries in that stadium talking to him and (special teams coach Jeff Rodgers), and so he felt confident — if we get to the 50(-yard line), give it a shot.”
That completed a major momentum shift in the first half.
Rookie Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence took a punishing from the Cardinals defense for most of the first half. While he was not sacked, he was hit multiple times and threw one interception.
Yet Arizona found itself tied, 7-7, through all but those two seconds left in the half in Jacksonville as its offense struggled with penalties. The Cardinals went 0-for-4 on third downs against a stingy Jaguars defense that held Arizona’s rushing attack to 3.2 yards per rush before Murray scrambled a few times on the final possession of the first half.
While Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray went 12-of-14 for 107 yards and rushed for his own score from a yard out, the less-than-desirable run game for Arizona showed up in key moments.
The Cardinals failed to convert two 3rd-and-1 plays to kill drives and later had a penalty knock a 3rd-and-4 to 3rd-and-13. That drive also ended with an Andy Lee punt.
Jacksonville found momentum going into halftime, as Lawrence found receiver D.J. Chark for a score to cap a 74-yard drive with 21 seconds left in the second quarter.
Lawrence went 12-of-17 for 117 yards, the touchdown, plus the interception.
