Travon Walker costs Jaguars with boneheaded mental mistake
Jacksonville Jaguars pass rusher Travon Walker made an inexcusable mistake that cost his team a chance at a comeback win Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.
The Jaguars were poised to get the ball back while trailing 12-7 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville on Sunday. Jacksonville’s defense was able to get a stop on running back Aaron Jones, and while the Jaguars were out of timeouts, they theoretically would have at least had a chance to make some magic happen with a few seconds remaining.
Walker seemed determined to try to force a fumble and kept punching at the ball well after the whistle, which essentially turned into throwing reckless punches at Jones. It made for an obvious unnecessary roughness penalty that gave Minnesota an automatic first down and fundamentally ended the game.
Down 12-7, the Jaguars stopped the Vikings on third down and were ready to get the ball back, likely in good field position.
But Travon Walker's deadball penalty squashed any hope the Jags had. pic.twitter.com/4LkaE9YiR1
— The Comeback NFL (@TheComebackNFL) November 10, 2024
Travon Walker just threw a punch after the Jaguars stopped the Vikings on third down.
Jacksonville would’ve gotten the ball back with a chance to win the game. Instead, the Vikings get an automatic first down thanks to the flag thrown. pic.twitter.com/PO8NYeZvfT
— Arye Pulli (@AryePulli) November 10, 2024
The Jaguars may not have won either way, but Walker’s lack of discipline is definitely a problem. The former first overall pick has to hear the whistle and know when the play is over.
The Jaguars have had issues all season long, with one of their own players accusing them of quitting at one point. In this instance, Walker had the opposite problem and went too far.