Jaguars lose 13-12 heartbreaker to Texans after failed two-point conversion run by Leonard Fournette

HOUSTON – Often Sunday, Jaguars rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew saw his pocket close quickly with Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt coming hard from the edge and pressure coming through the middle.

Minshew still tried to provide a spark like he did after replacing injured starter Nick Foles and completing his first 13 passes on his way to a record-breaking performance in last week’s loss to Kansas City.

But the Jaguars couldn't avoid starting the season 0-2 after losing to the Texans 13-12 in their AFC South opener after Leonard Fournette was stopped short of the end zone on a two-point conversion run.

Minshew sure made it exciting, giving hope. Minshew played his best Sunday when desperation was at a high on the Jaguars' final drive and a crowd of 71,651 at NRG Stadium was screaming for the Texans to put a stop to any potential mania.

In fact, Minshew mania still made an appearance, even when the quarterback from Washington State was 68 yards away from the end zone and just three minutes and 38  seconds remained in the game.

He appeared undaunted.

Besides handoffs to Fournette, Minshew threw a 12-yard strike to Chris Conley and then a 14-yard pass to DJ Chark. Suddenly, Minshew was marching in Texans territory. And as ferocious Watt looked coming off the edge, he couldn't get him. On a fourth-and-10 play from Houston 31, Minshew took off for a sensational 18-yard run.

Two plays later, Minshew spotted Chark in the corner of the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown pass with 30 seconds remaining in the game.

''Man, just give credit to all our guys staying with it,'' Minshew said. ''We kept fighting the whole time. They were a good defense and just for us to keep battling. We made too many mistakes early. You know what? The encouraging thing is we didn't play even close to what we should have, and we were right  there in the game and could have won it.''

For the first time for the entire afternoon, coach Doug Marrone didn't look angry after Chark's touchdown catch. Instead, Marrone looked happy. Finally, the Jaguars had a chance to steal a win.

Marrone apparently didn't want to play for overtime. He kept his offense on the field instead of sending out Josh Lambo for the extra-point kick that could have had tied it at 13-all. Fournette get the handoff on the conversion run, and he close of getting across the end zone, but not close enough.

The officials ruled after a replay review that Fournette was stopped short.

''You come up a couple inches short, and we lost the game,'' Marrone said. ''It was a decision that I made prior to us getting the last possession. 

Minshew completed 23-of-33 passes for 213 yards, 122 coming on the final two drives.  He got hit hard, was sacked four times and lost a fumble deep in his own territory in the fourth quarter that led to a Deshaun Watson’s 2-yard touchdown run for the Texans.

Until early in the fourth quarter, Minshew’s most successful drive came midway in the second quarter when he led the Jaguars on a 10-play, 47-yard drive that ended on Lambo’s 40-yard field goal that tied the score at 3 in the second quarter.

Still, Jaguars receivers struggled to get separation until the fourth quarter. The offensive play-calling was too predictable, running too often on first down. The Texans' game plan was simple – unravel the rookie quarterback with blitz packages and explosive pressure off the edge.

In addition to pass protection breakdowns, the Jaguars were their own worst enemy. They had too many miscues like in the third quarter when it appeared Fournette had a first down on a third-and-1 play, but center Brandon Linder was flagged for holding.

On the next play, left tackle Will Richardson was called for a false start. After an 8-yard scramble by Minshew, Logan Cooke was on the field again for his sixth punt of the game.

Early in the fourth quarter, Minshew made a beautiful 30-yard throw to Chark, but the play was nullified when right tackle Jawaan Taylor was called for holding. Then, Minshew was sacked and lost a fumble that gave the Texans the ball at the Jaguars’ 20. In four plays, the Texans turned a tight 6-3 game into a 13-3 lead after Watson’s 2-yard run that came after a missed tackle by defensive tackle Marcell Dareus.

When the Jaguars turned to their second option, Fournette mostly ran into a loaded box of defenders. He did what he could, rushing for 47 yards on 15 carries, averaging 3.1 per carry.

''We lost. That's the moral of the story,'' Minshew said. ''Silver lining is we have some things we can build on, some things that if we clean up, we can be a really, really good team.''

The Jaguars still managed to make it a one-score game with just more than six minutes remaining after Lambo's 32-yard field goal put the Jaguars within 13-6.

Now they have a quick turnaround before the next challenge Thursday night against the Tennessee Titans at TIAA Bank Field.

''Every loss hurts,'' Marrone said. ''It's hard to put a thing on it. You know, I'm not into Thursday yet. I'm still on this thing.''