(Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images)
The Jacksonville Jaguars are one of a few young teams across the NFL that seem to have lots of potential this season and could perhaps pull off an upset of a more established contender come playoff time.
Quarterback Trevor Lawrence seems to be on the verge of stardom after a rough rookie season, and he came on strong in 2022 during his second pro season, especially down the stretch.
Head coach Doug Pederson says Lawrence has become the QB they had anticipated he could become, and he talked about the qualities that have made him into just that with Sky Sports NFL.
“He’s the real deal. He’s the quarterback we had anticipated.” Pederson said.
“He’s the real deal. He’s the quarterback we had anticipated.”
Jags head coach Doug Pederson insists there is lots more to come from quarterback Trevor Lawrence. pic.twitter.com/2gxgXgtBFh
— Sky Sports NFL (@SkySportsNFL) September 1, 2023
As a rookie in 2021, Lawrence threw just 12 touchdown passes while leading the NFL with 17 interceptions while the Jaguars went 3-14, and some were likely ready to write him off as a bust.
He also struggled during the first half of last season as his team lost six of its first eight games, but after that, something changed within him and his teammates.
He threw 15 touchdown passes and just two interceptions while completing 69.7 percent of his pass attempts in the last nine games of the regular season, and Jacksonville won seven of them, which was good enough to get them a wild-card playoff spot.
In the wild-card round, Lawrence had a wretched first half against the Los Angeles Chargers, but he played brilliantly afterward to lead his team back from a 27-0 deficit to a 31-30 victory.
He will have some additional help this season in the form of wide receiver Calvin Ridley, who was suspended for all of last season for gambling but put up 1,374 yards and nine touchdowns as recently as 2020.
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