Trevor Lawrence has ‘exciting young group of playmakers’ at his disposal

After going 1-15 last year, it was clear the Jacksonville Jaguars were in need of a makeover. Thus, they moved on from head coach Doug Marrone and hired Urban Meyer not long after the 2020 season. They also used the first overall pick in this year’s draft to select quarterback Trevor Lawrence. The Jaguars look in good shape after all the moves they made this offseason and Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus recently drew up a general assessment of the franchise.

Linsey recently outlined every NFL team’s strengths, weaknesses and as a bonus, he picked an X factor for each one of them. He believes the Jaguars’ strength is their skilled-position players. He says that Jacksonville is making sure their rookie quarterback has enough weapons at his disposal and points out that DJ Chark Jr., Laviska Shenault Jr., and Collin Johnson posted receiving grades of 70.0 or higher last season.

Linsey goes on to say that free-agent addition Marvin Jones Jr. will give Lawrence a reliable target and someone he can trust in 50/50 balls. He thinks that the rookie signal-caller has an ‘exciting young group of playmakers to grow alongside him’. That includes running backs James Robinson and Travis Etienne.

The Jaguars have a potential franchise quarterback in Trevor Lawrence.

This is not the first time the Jaguars have a shot at a top quarterback in the first round of the draft. They chose Byron Leftwich in 2003, Blaine Gabbert in 2011, and Blake Bortles in 2014. None of them was the long-term answer at the position. There were several reasons for that but the bottom line is that they weren’t good enough. This time though, it looks like the Jags want to get it right with Lawrence.

The team’s brass is making sure the Clemson product has enough weapons at his disposal and even got him offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, who was key in the development of Pro Bowl quarterback Russell Wilson back in Seattle. The offensive line can certainly play better than they did last year. If they do, the rookie’s chances of succeeding will go up significantly.

Lawrence has been described as a generational talent and the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck in 2012. Back at Clemson, he showed he has the tools to play the position at a high level. Also, he showed maturity in a sitdown he had with Michael Rosenberg of Sports Illustrated before this year’s draft. If you missed the conversation, the former Tiger makes it clear that doesn’t live and breathe football. Also, he doesn’t let his job define him as a person but that doesn’t mean he isn’t passionate or driven.

The Jaguars felt good enough about Lawrence’s mindset (and talent) that they made him the top pick in the selection meeting. In fact, it seemed like he was going to be their choice early in the process, so it’s only fair that they make sure he is in a position to succeed. That means making sure he’s got enough time to throw the ball and a talented surrounding cast.

The Jaguars are in the early stage of a rebuild, but the early signs are encouraging. They have a quarterback with upside in Trevor Lawrence and a talented group of skilled-position players.