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Jaguars stifle Chiefs en route to third straight win

Oct 7, 2007 - 10:05 PM By Marc Bowman PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) - David Garrard earned redemption in his return to Kansas City, pacing the Jacksonville Jaguars to a 17-7 victory over the Chiefs on Sunday.

Garrard completed 10 of his first 11 passes, leading the Jaguars to a 10-0 halftime lead. Garrard completed 20-of-27 passes for 218 yards and a touchdown.

Last December, the Jaguars concluded their season here with a 35-30 loss to the Chiefs, a third straight loss which knocked them out of playoff contention.

"It was our second challenge in a row against the AFC West and I'm really proud of our football team," Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio said. "It was a very solid win for us against a good football team in a tough environment."

"Everything comes full circle," Garrard said. "I knew today would be different. This season is different. Going through what I went through last year has prepared me. It has allowed me to be the quarterback I am today."

Garrard's controlled passing game led to the game's first score when John Carney connected on a 20-yard field goal to give the Jaguars a 3-0 lead as time expired in the first period, capping a drive that lasted 10 minutes, 55 seconds. Carney was filling in for kicker Josh Scobee, who remained out with a strained right quadriceps.

"We're turning into the kind of offense that controls the clock," Garrard said. "We want to control the clock and take care of the ball. The more we can control it, the more the defense is off the field.

"We thought it was imperative that we were able to run the football and be able to slow them down in the run game," Del Rio said. We were able to get that done today."

Maurice Jones-Drew broke through the middle of the Kansas City line for a 52-yard touchdown, extending Jacksonville's lead to 10-0 midway through the second quarter. Jones-Drew finished with 82 yards on nine carries. He had rushed for 100 yards on 33 carries in the first three games this season.

"It's been a while, so it felt good to get into the end zone," Jones-Drew said. "Everybody did a great job today."

"We didn't stop the run," Chiefs defensive end Jared Allen said. "They did a good job running the ball, jamming the run down our throats, and until we stop the run teams are going to keep doing that to us. We have to put our nose to the grindstone and get better."

Garrard sealed the victory with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Dennis Northcutt to give the Jaguars a 17-0 lead with 8:26 remaining in the fourth quarter.

"I love throwing touchdowns and I love running for touchdowns," Garrard said. "But it's all about the wins and losses. When we have days like this where all phases are clicking, the sky's the limit."

Northcutt had four catches for 73 yards for Jacksonville, which has won three straight since a season-opening loss to Tennessee.

The Jaguars' defense bottled up Chiefs rushing star Larry Johnson, holding him to just 12 yards on nine carries as Kansas City only penetrated Jacksonville territory three times.

"We had a good game plan," Jaguars linebacker Clint Ingram said. "When you go up against a guy like that, you have to get on him. That's the kind of defense we want to play. That's what we expect of ourselves. We almost pitched a shutout. That's pretty good."

"What's puzzling for us right now is we can't run the ball very consistently at all," Chiefs coach Herm Edwards said. "So, we became a one-handed team having to throw the ball all the time. That's not very good. We're going to have to do some things to change our running game. That's something we have to look at because we've struggled all year running the ball."

Jacksonville had its shutout bid spoiled when Brodie Croyle threw a 13-yard touchdown to Samie Parker on the game's final play.

"Anytime you are playing good defense, you are tackling well," Del Rio said. "I think the fundamentals of football are so important, particularly on defense shedding blocks and being able to tackle. I thought we were very solid in those areas today for the most part."

The Jaguars (3-1) also drove Chiefs quarterback Damon Huard from the game in the fourth quarter with a right shoulder contusion. Huard went 19-of-30 for 196 yards before being replaced by Croyle.

"Give Jacksonville a lot of credit," Huard said. "It's a great defense and they came into our house and beat us bad today. That doesn't happen very often. Their defense was outstanding and they forced us to be one-dimensional."

"We don't know," Edwards said of the seriousness of Huard's injury. "I know he couldn't go back in the game. The MRI will tell where he's at, but he's very sore in the shoulder."

Chiefs perennial Pro Bowl tight end Gonzalez had eight catches for 100 yards.

"If I get 100 yards, we usually win," Gonzalez said. "I'd trade it all in for a win. It's one of those frustrating games. We can be a better team than this because we have the talent. I don't know that we're playing like it. Of course, everything is magnified when you lose."

Kansas City (2-3) failed in its bid to win three straight games.