JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - While a large portion of Sunday's game felt like a nightmare for the Jaguars, the Jacksonville squad found a way to fight through adversity and clinch its first playoff win in over a decade.
For the players who endured the letdowns of yesteryear, the wild-card round win over the Buffalo Bills was a release of sorts. It was the latest in a long line of season milestones that have distanced the once-struggling franchise from its long-suffering woes.
"It feels good," right guard A.J. Cann said after the game.
"It's the first time for me [winning a playoff game]. It's the first time for a lot of the guys in this locker room. For us to be able to advance to the next round, which is something that hasn't been done here for a while is unbelievable."
The 10-3 win wasn't pretty. In fact, if it were a regular-season game, some would have considered it a failure.
However, the Jaguars are still moving on to the divisional round against the Pittsburgh Steelers, extending their reemergence for at least one more week.
"It means a lot [because] there's nothing like winning," rookie wide receiver Dede Westbrook said.
"For me, I'm really big on winning, like I pride myself [on] that because there's nothing that anyone call tell you once you win. For us to be on that track as far as winning goes, defeating the Bills in the first round of the playoffs, it feels great and I'm excited about it."
The Jaguars house a young locker room that is growing by the day. The newfound success has led to that growth.
Jacksonville is building something and it's strengthened with every win.
"It's just special because we're all coming together," veteran safety Peyton Thompson said.
"There have been a lot of guys that have been here for three or four years, who have taken L after L after L, so to come together and build together with some new pieces and get W after W after W - that's six-straight wins at home - [we] can't feel better right now."
Follow Mike Kaye on Twitter at @Mike_E_Kaye.
