Doug Marrone’s decision to go for two at the end of his Jacksonville Jaguars’ 13-12 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday may not have paid off, but it was the right call.
Jacksonville drove for a touchdown to make it a one-point game with 30 seconds left. Rather than go for the extra point and play for overtime, Marrone opted to go for two. The Jags handed the ball off to Leonard Fournette, who got stopped.
Even though it didn’t work out, the gamble made sense.
First off, anyone who saw last Monday night’s Texans game knows how quickly Deshaun Watson can get his team into scoring territory. He threw a touchdown in two plays against the Saints. 30 seconds was plenty of time for him to set up for a field goal.
Secondly, the Jags were the inferior team. They were nearly 10-point underdogs and they were using their backup quarterback. Just getting it that close was a win. Reducing the game into fewer plays works in your favor when you’re not as good as your opponent. It’s like getting into a 3-point shooting contest with Steph Curry. If you each only get one shot, you might get lucky and win if you make it and he misses. But if you’re shooting best out of 100, he’s going to prevail.
Forget the 2-pointer, Marrone will be answering questions about his confrontation with Jalen Ramsey during the game.
