Trevor Lawrence gets low but fair spot in recent NFL QB index

When the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted Trevor Lawrence, they knew they had landed their quarterback of the future. However, making the leap from college to pros is no walk in the park and the former Clemson Tiger’s rookie season wasn’t particularly great, which was reflected in a recent ranking.

Gregg Rosenthal of NFL Media recently shared his quarterback index and Lawrence landed at 30. For context, 32 players were included, so there were only two “worse” than him and they were Sam Darnold (31) and fellow rookie Zach Wilson (32). Regarding Lawrence, Rosenthal says he was “uncanny and precise on third downs early” in the Jaguars’ Week 18 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts. In particular, he highlights the quarterback’s third-quarter touchdown reception to wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. Here’s the pass he’s referring to, which displays his ability to scramble to gain more time and his pinpoint accuracy.

Rosenthal goes on praise Lawrence for overcoming a “disastrous situation”.

"It was a deeply disappointing year overall for the No. 1 pick, with too-rare glimmers of hope like the finale. Still, he didn’t look out of place. He looked like a talented player unable to overcome a disastrous situation, throwing to other teams’ failed draft picks, trying to protect his TD-to-INT ratio rather than playing free. Don’t blow this, Jaguars. (Again.)"

Trevor Lawrence should move up a few spots if the QB index.

As Rosenthal noted, Lawrence landed on a team that seemingly had no plant develop him, and he didn’t progress as much as he could have because the Jaguars didn’t surround him with enough talent to succeed. Moving forward, the front office must make it their number one priority to build around him.

Of course, Lawrence isn’t free of blame for the Jags’ 3-14 record in 2021. He lead the league with 17 interceptions (tied with Matthew Stafford) and while some of them weren’t his fault, he could have avoided a few in them. Then again, he was a rookie, and expecting him to play like a seasoned pro and carry the team on his shoulders was unrealistic, especially when you take into account that he didn’t get much help from the organization that drafted him and had to play for a head coach who didn’t seem to know what he was doing and looked overwhelmed more often than not.

Having nothing to play for, Lawrence showed out in the season finale and showed what he can do when he’s in the zone. That he helped the Jaguars beat the Colts while still keeping the first overall pick was the cherry on the top.