Over the past two years, Trevor Lawrence has been under scrutiny. Some of it is warranted, and plenty of it has to do with the fact that he earned the "generational talent" moniker coming out of college. But whether he's lived up to his draft billing, it looks like the Jacksonville Jaguars are confident they have the right guy behind center. In fact, former teammate Mitch Morse had nothing but good things to say about the fifth-year quarterback.
Morse made an appeareance on centered on Buffalo and told host Eric Wood that Lawrence is mature beyond his years, pointing out that he's great leadership skills on par with some of the top quarterbacks in the NFL.
"My experience with Trevor was that he was a 40-year-old man on a 24-year-old man's body. You gotta think this. This guy has been one of the most highly touted prospects since he was 16 or 17, so he's had to carry himself like professional way earlier than a lot of these guys have," Morse responded when Wood asked him to share his thoughts on Lawrence. "Listen, I think the first thing you have to do is, as any leader in a football locker room is you have to command your locker room with just your personality and your ability to maintain relationships."
"Morse continued, "And Trevor does that just as good as anyone. So in the locker room, he had the guts, he had the relationships that you need. He has that competitiveness, but it manifests itself in different ways, like you can see it. It's palpable in Josh [Allen], or it's palpable in Pat [Mahomes]. My first quarterback was Alex [Smith]. He steps in a huddle. He's a maniac, and it's something you didn't see. Trevor has that poise that is so important to have at that quarterback position."
"You might not see that killer instinct, but he has it. And I think that this new regime is going to bring that out good, right? And he has it. He has all the tools. He's a great dude. He's an excellent quarterback. We all felt like he was our guy. And listen, dude, it's everyone's job to critique everyone right? The opinions that matter, and this is what I told him, are in the locker room, and he's got the guys, so I think it's going to be a great transition for him, very nurturing, not that the other regime wasn't, but he's going to have that voice in he's had it. He just needs to let it loose."
Morse spent 2024 snapping centers to Lawrence after signing a two-year deal with the Jags. If someone can talk about high-quarterback play, it's him. A second-round pick in the 2014 draft, he played with Alex Smith and later Patrick Mahomes during his four-year stint with the Kansas City Chiefs. He then signed with the Buffalo Bills and was teammates with Josh Allen.
Below is Morse's full exhange with Eric Wood. His remarks about Lawrence start at the 6:03 mark.
You won't hear the Jaguars complain about Trevor Lawrence on or off the field
There's no denying that Trevor Lawrence has the all tools to succeed at the NFL. The questions about him center on the fact that he hasn't been consistent enough, having played at an elite level in 2022. Just recently, Chris Simms talked about how his mechanic and decision-making could use refinement. He isn't wrong.
Last year, Lawrence's mechanics and decision-making was inconsistent. The hope is that bringing in Liam Coen will help him fix both issues. He had a role in Baker Mayfield posting career numbers last year and is expected to do the same for No. 16.
On the other hand, it's reassuring to hear Morse that Lawrence is a leader. Heading into the 2021 draft, there were questions about his competitiveness and commitment to football. However, that didn't turn out to be an issue with the Jaguars. Heck, he's been named team captain for straight years.
Of course, Trevor Lawrence is under pressure to perform, but that's why the Jacksonville Jaguars made several moves to ensure he's in a position to succeed. If everything goes according to plan, they could see the best version of their quarterback in 2025.