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From Orlando Sentinel

Veteran kicker Carney lifts Jacksonville

Alan Schmadtke | Sentinel Staff Writer
September 17, 2007

JACKSONVILLE - It might be too soon to say Jacksonville salvaged its season two games into a 16-game schedule. But the Jaguars found something important Sunday.

Their defensive front four. A second-half quarterback. Some confidence.

The beat-up and nearly beleaguered Jags needed help from Atlanta and received it in the form of former UCF kicker Matt Prater, turning the second of his two missed field goal attempts into momentum and, eventually, a 13-7 triumph at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium.

An 0-2 start, a stark reality, flipped to 1-1 with David Garrard's fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Reggie Williams and a defensive about-face.

"It's a sigh of relief," cornerback Rashean Mathis said. "We needed something positive in this organization, and this is something postive. Regardless of the score, regardless of the stats, a win was positive for this organization."

The Jags sacked Atlanta quarterback Joey Harrington seven times, second-most in franchise history, and showed some offensive spark and risk-taking in seizing the game after the Falcons (0-2) wouldn't take it.

Garrard threw for 272 yards, the second-highest single-game total of his modest career, and walked off the field cradling the football because he helped his defense win the second half.

After Prater missed a chip-shot field goal (26 yards) to punctuate Atlanta's first series of the second half, Jacksonville got the ball with a 7-3 deficit. The Jags dug holes for themselves with sacks and penalties, and Garrard dug them out.

A 33-yard pass to Ernest Wilford on third-and-5. A 22-yard strike to Dennis Northcutt. Finally, early in the fourth period, a 14-yard touchdown strike to Williams on third-and-goal.

"We were doing a pretty good job moving the ball with the run, but it got to the point where we needed to put it in the air," Garrard said. "I was happy to have the ball in my hands."

On the next possession, the Jags chewed eight minutes off the clock with a 13-play drive that included three third-down conversions and a risky fourth-and-1 conversion near midfield. Maurice Jones-Drew ran behind Khalif Barnes and Vince Manuwai for 6 yards.

"I felt like we had to make a play to win the game," Jags Coach Jack Del Rio said of the decision to run on fourth down. "Had to go do it right there. You have to be able to make a yard to win the game. We had to play aggressively."

Newly-signed kicker John Carney booted a 27-yard field goal with 3:41 to play. Carney, the oldest kicker in the NFL, was 2-for-2 Sunday, a contrast to young Prater.

"The field goals that we missed," Atlanta Coach Bobby Petrino said, "killed us."

Said Prater: "I put it all on my shoulders. I felt like I let the team down. I didn't do my part, and I feel pretty bad about it."

Prater might have felt it was all on him, but he had help. After producing 204 yards offense in the first half, the Falcons gained only 44 in the second half.

Jacksonville kept the ball for more than 20 minutes of the second half; Atlanta had it for less than 10 minutes.

"We wanted to go out and start fast and finish strong," said Jags defensive tackle Marcus Stroud, who has three sacks in two games.

The Jags surrendered 282 yards on the ground last week to Tennessee and were embarrassed to have to explain it again and again in the run-up to the Falcons.

"We always knew we could to it," end Bobby McCray said. "It was a matter of us executing our assignments. We did a better job of that today."

Alan Schmadtke can be reached at aschmadtke@orlandosentinel.com.

Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel

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