Jacksonville Jaguars can finally get their franchise QB with 1st overall pick

The Jacksonville Jaguars can now pick the best quarterback in the draft.

The Jacksonville Jaguars as of now have the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, and they need a franchise quarterback. Have the stars finally aligned for a team that has experienced a decade and a half of losing records (except for 2017)? The New York Jets finally won a game and now hold the second overall selection, and if they finish the season with identical 1-15 records, the ‘Jags’ will have the first pick.

If you watched the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship game on December 19, 2020, you will agree that Trevor Lawrence is currently the best quarterback, if not the best player, in college football. Also, there’s every reason to believe he will be a successful signal-caller for some team in the NFL; he’s that special. To date, he has only lost one game – ever, the 2020 NCAA Championship game against LSU.

Lawrence has a record of 35-1 in his college career, and his stats probably have all NFL offensive coordinators salivating at the potential he’ll bring to the league. He has thrown 88 touchdowns to only 16 interceptions. In fact, he has more rushing touchdowns (17) in his college career than he has interceptions. He’s what every team, head coach, and general manager is looking for in today’s NFL: a quarterback who can make every throw, doesn’t make bad decisions, and is mobile. And he’s the signal-caller Jaguars fans have been dreaming about.

Lawrence, not Justin Fields, is the QB the Jacksonville Jaguars need.

If you watched the Big Ten Conference Championship game on December 19th, you likely saw  Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields a few weeks ago. If you saw his performance against the Northwestern Wildcats, you will likely agree there’s no comparison between Lawrence and him.

Now, if you look at his record as a starting quarterback for Ohio State, he has a 19-1 record and two Big Ten Championships. However, take a look a little closer and you will find out he was 13-1 in 2019. All of the 13 wins were double-digit wins, with the closest game being a 28-17 defeat of Penn State. Their loss came in the first round of the College Football playoff, where they lost to Clemson 29-23.

This season Buckeyes are 6-0, all games against Big Ten Conference teams. If you look at Fields’ passing statistics they are very impressive. His touchdown to interceptions in 2019 was 41-1 although this year, it is 15-5.

Ohio State in the Big Ten is like Alabama in the SEC and Clemson in the ACC – they are the class of their conferences. On the other hand, the Big Ten Conference is not the SEC or ACC. It could be argued that the Big Ten overall is the weakest of the power five conferences. The Buckeyes are more talented than every other Big Ten school, so Fields hasn’t been playing against the toughest competition.

It doesn’t work that way in the NFL. Every team has far superior talent to any college team. An elite quarterback is expected to elevate the play of the offense when it is less talented. Seeing Trevor Lawrence play for three college football seasons, he has the look and feel of a potentially elite signal-caller. Justin Fields is a very good college quarterback, but will he be successful against NFL defenses?

Now that the Jaguars have the first overall pick in next year’s NFL draft, it seems obvious who that pick will be. Cue Roger Goodell: “With the first pick in the 2021 NFL draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars select…”