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Jaguars 'hurt' by AFC Championship Game loss after giving up 10-point lead in fourth quarter

Tom Brady's surge served as a purge on the Jaguars' playoff prospects.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The Jaguars had a 10-point lead with less than 15 minutes left in Sunday's AFC Championship Game. That lead - and Jacksonville's Super Bowl aspirations - evaporated roughly 12 minutes later.

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady led two unanswered touchdown-scoring drives to end the game. The five-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback produced 138 passing yards and two touchdowns during the game's final quarter.

Brady's surge served as a purge on the Jaguars' playoff prospects. The dread caused by the 24-20 defeat was felt in the Jaguars' locker room after the game.

"I wouldn't necessarily say it's frustrating, it just hurts," rookie defensive end Dawuane Smoot said. "We gave it our all and at the end, we weren't able to execute."

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The Jaguars produced 312 total yards during the first three quarters. Jacksonville's defense held New England to just 173 total yards during that same time period.

That early production wasn't enough to prevent the inevitable slip.

“They came out and made a few more plays,” defensive tackle Mailk Jackson said. “We can’t sit here and dwell on what happened before or after or who helped who. They just made more plays.”

The Jaguars' turnaround season won't be remembered as a waste. The team won 12 games this year after three seasons that produced just 11 total victories.

However, the sting of the loss clouded any thoughts of recent success with disappointment.

"Right now it's kind of tough to reflect but [this loss] hurts," wide receiver Allen Hurns said.

"There's no sugarcoating it. I think probably later on in the offseason, it'll be a good time to reflect things but right now it hurts."

The Jaguars will now return to Jacksonville with an even bigger chip on their shoulders. The team has tasted success and now it wants more.

"[We'll] just use this [loss] as motivation to prepare us for the offseason," defensive end Calais Campbell said. "Come back and put the work in so we can have an opportunity next year."

Follow Mike Kaye on Twitter at @Mike_E_Kaye.

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