Urban Meyer: Jaguars' Loss to Bengals Was 'Devastating' and 'Heartbreaking'

The Jacksonville Jaguars are 0-4 after losing 24-21 to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday.

It was a difficult defeat for the Jags, who led 14-0 at halftime but allowed two third-quarter touchdowns. James Robinson gave Jacksonville the lead back, but Cincinnati won thanks to Joe Burrow's second touchdown pass to C.J. Uzomah and a game-winning 73-yard drive capped by Evan McPherson's 35-yard field goal. It was the team's 19th straight defeat dating back to last season, per Pro Football Reference. 

First-year Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer told reporters after the game: "That's devastating, heartbreaking. These guys—usually I’m not wrong about stuff like that. I just see a good team in there. I see good guys. I see good hearts. I see guys that work. I told them: 'I'm not wrong. I'm not wrong about that stuff.'"

Meyer added that his team would "win some games."

"We are getting better each week," he said. "It's just sickening that you didn't win that thing. But like I told you, I'm not wrong about that. I'm not wrong about those guys in that room. They're going to keep swinging as hard as they possibly can."

Some bright spots exist for the Jags. For starters, they've played a brutal schedule that includes games against the 3-0 Denver Broncos, 3-0 Arizona Cardinals and 3-1 Bengals.

The schedule won't be that hard the rest of the way, and it includes two matchups with the 0-3 Indianapolis Colts and another with the 0-3 New York Jets. Eight of their final 13 games are against teams with losing records.

Jacksonville did start its season with a loss to the 1-2 Houston Texans, but the Jaguars look far better now than they did in Week 1.

Of note, Jacksonville led Arizona 19-10 late in the third quarter in Week 3 thanks to a tremendous defensive effort, but the Cardinals stormed back with 21 straight points to end the game.

On Thursday, the offense and defense were firing on all cylinders, and rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence enjoyed his best game (17-of-24 for 204 yards; 36 rushing yards and one score).

However, the Bengals offense came to life in the second half as Burrow threw for 253 yards. The Jaguars defense had no answer, and the offense sputtered.

Still, Jacksonville has made progress each week, and Lawrence's play was encouraging.

The Jags will look to earn their first win Sunday, Oct. 10, when they host the Tennessee Titans.