NFL fans were treated to a classic on Saturday when Trevor Lawrence guided his Jacksonville Jaguars to a comeback win over the Los Angeles Chargers from a 27-0 deficit. It was one of the biggest comebacks in NFL postseason history, but where does it rank among other comebacks in the NFL playoffs?
3. 27-Point Comeback – Los Angeles Chargers 30-31 Jacksonville Jaguars (2022/23)
Trevor Lawrence had a nightmare to start this Wild Card Round playoff game. In the first quarter and a bit, Lawrence threw FOUR interceptions, three went to Chargers CB Asante Samuel Jr., and the Chargers raced out to a lead of 27-0.
In the Jaguars’ last drive before the half, Lawrence led them downfield for their first score of the game, and the comeback was on with a 27-7 half-time score. Lawrence looked like a different player in the second half, and threw for a further three touchdowns to drag the Jags back into the game.
With three minutes left, the score was now 30-28 and the Chargers had just missed a field goal to extend their lead. Lawrence and running back Travis Etienne drove the Jaguars into field goal range with under a minute on the clock.
The Jaguars burned the clock and with just three seconds left, a chance at a 36-yard field goal to win the game beckoned. Jags kicker Riley Patterson stepped up and nailed it to give the Jaguars an unlikely victory in a game where they did not take a snap when they had the lead.
2. 28-Point Comeback – Kansas City Chiefs 44-45 Indianapolis Colts (2013/14)
Andrew Luck and TY Hilton paired up to drag the Indianapolis Colts through the 2013/14 Wild Card Round. After the first drive of the third quarter, the Colts trailed 38-10 after Alex Smith’s four touchdown passes had taken the Chiefs to what seemed like an unassailable lead.
It was a different story after that. The Colts managed to stop the Chiefs offense from scoring another touchdown while Andrew Luck put their defense to the sword to end the game. Luck ended up with 443 yards and four touchdowns. Meanwhile, TY Hilton grabbed 13 passes for 224 yards and two TDs.
Luck and Hilton combined for a big touchdown drive when the Colts trailed by six with just five minutes left. A 64-yard Hilton touchdown catch gave the Colts a 45-44 lead with just over four minutes left, and one of the greatest postseason comebacks ever was complete as the Chiefs came up short on their final drive.
1. 32-Point Comeback – Houston Oilers 38-41 Buffalo Bills (1992/93)
For the largest comeback in postseason history, we have to go back 30 years. It was another Wild Card Round matchup, this time between the Houston Oilers and the Buffalo Bills.
Warren Moon’s Houston Oilers took a massive 32-point lead in the third quarter behind his four touchdown passes. However, not to be outdone, Bills QB Frank Reich dragged his team back into the game with four of his own.
Reich threw three touchdowns to Andre Reed at the end of the third and start of the fourth quarter to help drag the score back from 35-3 to 38-35 in the Bills’ favor.
The Oilers tied it up late with a field goal and we were off to overtime. Despite losing the toss, the Bills got the ball back with an interception by Nate Odomes. Odomes’ pick set up the 32-yard game-winning field by Steve Christie to complete the largest comeback in postseason history.
Many credit Bills head coach Marv Levy for his half-time team talk for sparking the comeback.
“You’ve got thirty more minutes,” Levy told his players. “Maybe it’s the last thirty minutes of your season. When your season’s over, you’re going to have to live with yourselves and look yourselves in the eyes. You’d well better have reason to feel good about yourselves, regardless of how this game turns out.”
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