Trevor Lawrence Confident In Jaguars’ Future Despite One-and-Done Playoff Loss

‘There’s no guaranteed success, but I do feel like this is sustainable, the things that we’re doing,’ Lawrence said.

Trevor Lawrence #16 of the Jacksonville Jaguars looks on prior to the AFC Wild Card Playoff game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Buffalo Bills at EverBank Stadium on Jan. 11, 2026 in Jacksonville, Florida. Mike Carlson/Getty Images

Despite losing their wild-card playoff game to the Bills 27–24 at home on Jan. 11, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said after the game that his team is positioned for success.

Although they were bounced early, the 13–4 Jags accomplished quite a bit in their first season under head coach Liam Coen.

“It was a tough way to end this year,” Lawrence said. “It’s been a fun year, and it’s hard to kind of put the words the right words to it just because there’s so much work that’s put into it, into any season. And then you look at the year we’ve had and some of the adversity, and just the way we finished the year and the confidence we were playing with, and then it just ends so suddenly.”

Lawrence threw a bad interception midway through the first quarter that set up the Bills for a field goal.

He made up for it with a long, methodical drive ending in a touchdown pass to wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.

Jacksonville forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, but were unable to capitalize and turned the ball over on downs inside the Buffalo 15-yard line; the Bills responded by going all the way down the field for a touchdown of their own.

The Jags had an opportunity to tie the game at the end of the first half when Lawrence competed a pass deep over the middle to WR Parker Washington for 34 yards; the offense snapped the ball with a fraction of a second left on the clock and got 5 yards closer thanks to an offsides call by the Buffalo defense; but kicker Cam Little’s field goal attempt hooked left and doinked off the upright.

The Bills widened their lead to 13–7 on their first possession of the second half. The Jags drove down the field in response, but Lawrence had a deep pass to tight end Brenton Strange broken up on 3rd down, forcing them to kick a field goal. Lawrence led a touchdown drive to open the 4th quarter, but the Bills responded with a TD of their own.

The Jags took the lead back, only for Bills QB Josh Allen to pound his way into the end zone for the go-ahead score. With 55 seconds left to play, Lawrence threw a pass to WR Jakobi Meyers, but the pass was tipped in the air and landed in the arms of safety Cole Bishop, ending the game.

“I think in any playoff game, mistakes are always magnified just because it always comes down to the end,” Lawrence said of his performance. “You don’t see a lot of blowouts in the playoffs. Everything’s on the line and everyone’s fighting to keep playing, so whether it’s turnovers or turnover-on-downs—we had three of those, I guess today, total—those add up and those take points off the board.”

Lawrence said there were several plays he wanted back, but he was proud of his team for fighting until the end.

“It’s a bummer, but I know that we left everything out there,” he said.

He also thanked the fans for being supportive throughout the season. Despite falling short in the postseason, the Jaguars have a lot of proud moments to hang their helmets on.

They went 5–3 in games against teams in this year’s playoffs, including a 35–6 stomping over the Los Angeles Chargers and a 34–20 win over the No. 1 seed Denver Broncos. They also beat the defending AFC Champion Kansas City Chiefs 31-28 in a dramatic showing on Monday Night Football early in the season. They finished the year 13–4 and won the AFC South.

While the loss was still fresh in his mind, Lawrence expressed confidence that Coen is building something great.

“There’s no guaranteed success, but I do feel like this is sustainable, the things that we’re doing,” he said. “Both sides of the ball had a hell of a year when it got down to the end, where we finished, and the growth that we had. And I know what we’re doing offensively. I feel like I got it, complete ownership of it and mastered it as the year went on. … But you have to earn it every year. It’s not just going to happen.”