The Jacksonville Jaguars are 4-3 heading into their BYE. Aside from having to put a renewed emphasis on fundamentals and execution, they'll need Trevor Lawrence to flip his switch and take his game to the next level.
Granted, Lawrence hasn't always gotten help from his supporting cast, but he needs to improve to the point where he can routinely carry the team on his shoulders and not the other way around. The good news is that head coach Liam Coen hasn't lost confidence in the fifth-year quarterback. However, the first-year head coach would like him to improve in a pair of critical areas.
Jaguars HC Liam Coen wants Trevor Lawrence to work on 2 key areas
Liam Coen had a sitdown with Ryan O'Halloran of the Florida Times-Union. The first-year head coach touched on several topics. At one point, the conversation turned to Trevor Lawrence and the areas where he wants him to improve: Being more decisive and using his legs to create plays. Here's the skinny.
"When No. 1 in the progression is open, we have to be automatic in A, throwing it, and B, catching it," Coen told O'Halloran. "We need to pull the trigger when No. 1 is open. (Secondly), continuing to use his legs and I think that's something we have to continue to lean into and get him going early on."
But despite the fact that Lawrence has his work cut out, Coen said later in the exchange that he's been pleased with his progress.
"I think he is throwing the ball better; the ball is starting to jump off his hand more," Coen said. "Now we just have to catch the football better. There were some throws in the (Rams) game that he put in some really good spots and we have to start making some plays."
The whole interview is worth reading, but basically, Coen acknowledges that Lawrence has done well in certain areas but still has room for improvement. And that's reflected in his statline. The first four weeks, the Jaguars quarterback completed 58.3 percent of his throws for five touchdowns with four interceptions.
Since then, he's logged a 59.1 percent completion rate for 775 yards with four touchdowns and one pick. On top of that, he's had 81 yards with two rushing touchdowns on 15 rushes. The improvement is notable even though he hasn't gotten optimal protection the past three games. Couple that with the fact that Jacksonville leads the league in drops, and you could make the case that he's doing more with less.
The Jaguars need Trevor Lawrence to keep improving
Of course, Trevor Lawrence must play better. The same is true for the rest of the team, but since he's the highest-paid player in Jacksonville, he will (rightly) be under more scrutiny.
The good news is that, at least from an outside perspective, it doesn't look like he's in a make-or-break year. Sure, he needs to play better as the year goes on, but Liam Coen appears to be confident that the veteran signal-caller is the answer behind center.
And that's the thing, as underwhelming as Lawrence has been, the organization hasn't put him in a position to succeed. Whether it was Urban Meyer or Doug Pederson, No. 16 hasn't had a coach who knows how to push the right buttons to get the best out of him. At least that was the case until Coen arrived.
Coen hasn't been afraid to call Lawrence out, but he's also aware that a) progress isn't linear and b) his supporting cast has at times a bit to be desired. Not surprisingly, the interview with Ryan O'Hallahan has a positive if not optimistic, tone.
The bottom line is that Liam Coen seems to be the right coach for Trevor Lawrence. Now, it will be up to him to take advantage of his tutelage.