SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 23, 2012
Jaguars 22, Colts 17: Maurice Jones-Drew rushed for 177 yards and a touchdown and Blaine Gabbert atoned for an awful day with an 80-yard touchdown pass to Cecil Shorts in the final minute to lift visiting Jacksonville to its first win.
On the first offensive play for the Jaguars (1-2) after the Colts (1-2) took a 17-16 lead on Adam Vinatieri's field goal, Gabbert hit Shorts on a slant up the right side and he broke away from the defense for the score. Gabbert had only 75 passing yards before the big play.
With his 59-yard touchdown run in the third quarter - the 63rd of his career - Jones-Drew surpassed Fred Taylor as the Jaguars' all-time leader in rushing touchdowns and pulled Jacksonville within 14-10. Josh Scobee booted field goals of 44, 47 and 26 yards for Jacksonville.
A week after making a game-winning 53-yard field goal, Vinatieri hooked a 36-yard attempt that would have given the Colts the lead. He atoned with a 37-yard field goal for a 17-16 lead with 56 seconds left, but Gabbert and the Jaguars (1-2) answered on the next offensive play.
Rookie quarterback Andrew Luck led the Colts down the field a third time in the fourth quarter, but his final pass was knocked away in the end zone.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Luck finished 22-for-46 for 313 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including a 40-yard strike to T.Y. Hilton in the first quarter. … Gabbert's final touchdown pass helped him avoid a second straight game with less than 100 passing yards. … Reggie Wayne caught eight passes for 88 yards for the Colts, and Hilton, who had one reception for 15 yards prior to Sunday, caught four passes for 113 yards and a touchdown.