Minus Brunell, Jags Tame Lions

Mark Brunell left the locker room on crutches, a bad sign for a Jacksonville team talking about making a big playoff run this season.

The Jaguars may not have as much to worry about, however, if Fred Taylor and backup quarterback Jamie Martin keep playing like they did Sunday.

Pressed into emergency duty, Martin threw a 67-yard touchdown pass on his second attempt and finished with 228 yards to lead the Jaguars to a 37-22 victory over the Detroit Lions.

Taylor ran for a team-record 183 yards to surpass the 1,000-yard mark as the Jaguars (10-3) all but clinched a playoff spot and moved three games ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Central. The Steelers lost 23-9 to New England.

By now, Taylor's success is expected. Not so for Martin, a fifth-year journeyman who had thrown just 34 NFL passes coming into this season.

"I think I have the ability," Martin said. "Obviously, I don't have Mark's talent or anything like that. But mentally, I've been around a couple years. Given time to prepare, I think I can do some big things."

Jaguars wide receiver Keenan McCardell outruns Lions safety Greg Jeffries on a 67-yard touchdown pass from Jamie Martin. (AP)

Barry Sanders finished with 102 yards for the Lions (5-8), but Detroit had its three-game winning streak halted along with almost any hope of a sneaking into the playoffs.

Brunell was diagnosed with a severely sprained left ankle, caused when Lions lineman Robert Porcher came in from the quarterback's blind side and bent him backwards, forcing the ankle to buckle underneath him on the game's second play.

It set the stage for Martin, who followed in the footsteps of Rob Johnson and Steve Matthews, the one-game wonders who led the Jaguars to victories when Brunell injured a knee last year.

Largely on the strength of his winning performance last year, Johnson signed a $25 million contract with the Buffalo Bills in the off-season. Matthews was released during training camp, giving the backup job to Martin, who came to Jacksonville after uneventful stints with Redskins and Rams.

"He did everything he had to," said Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin. "He came in and settled everybody down, which was really critical. I can't say enough about the kid's poise. He came in as the backup, and he didn't know if he was going to play or not, and he did an outstanding job."

Helped by Taylor's rushing, Martin led the Jaguars to scores on four of the first five drives he started.

The first score came on a 25-yard post route to Keenan McCardell, who caught the ball and outran the Lions secondary for a 67-yard touchdown. In the second quarter, Martin hit Jimmy Smith with a touch pass to the corner of the end zone for a 24-6 advantage.

Minutes before Smith's TD, Sanders broke a 39-yard run -- his longest since Nov. 8 -- to get the ball to the 2. But Jacksonville held on three straight plays, and a false start on fourth-and-goal forced the Lions to settle for a field goal.

The Lions let another great opportunity pass when Germane Crowell dropped what looked like a sure touchdown with his team trailing 27-16 in the third quarter.

After Crowell's drop, Detroit punted and the Jaguars put the game away on their next drive, an 80-yard march capped by Taylor's 11-yard touchdown run.

"Taylor is a good back, a very elusive back," said Lions receiver Herman Moore. "I'm not going to take anything away from him and I know our defensive guys were doing everything they could to stop him. He's almost like Barry, though. He makes people miss."

Sanders surpassed the century mark for the first time in three games, but went without a rushing touchdown for the seventh straight game to stay stuck on 99.

Charlie Batch went 14-for-33 for 250 yards and two touchdowns for Detroit.

Taylor broke his own single-game ushing record despite the absence of another key Jaguar, left tackle Tony Boselli, who was inactive with an injured ankle. Taylor's 32 carries also set a new Jaguars record.

"Yeah, I'm surprised," Taylor said when asked if he expected such a big rookie season. "I give a lot of credit to the guys up front. They stepped it up big. It gave Tony a good chance to rest his ankle."

Now, the big question is about Brunell's ankle. He left the stadium hobbling on crutches, the ankle in a large splint. It didn't look promising, but the players were buoyed by Martin's big performance.

"We've got a playmakers here," McCardell said. "We've just got to make it easy for him. Everyone else has to do their job. He has to do his job. If all that happens, we'll keep the bus rolling."

Notes

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