The Jacksonville Jaguars will get their much-needed BYE after losing to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 7. They'll have a chance to regroup and fix the issues that have plagued them all season. The coaching staff, for its part will need to focus on fundamentals and execution. Meanwhile, players will need to do their part and execute. One in particular who needs to step up is Trevor Lawrence.
Lawrence was expected to improve under Liam Coen, but as John Shipley of Sports Illustrated, the early results are negible. Granted, No. 16 has played better after a slow start to the season but not nearly enough to make you think he can carry the team on his shoulders. That's led an NFL writer to wonder whether he can be the long-term answer in Jacksonville.
An NFL analsyt wonders if the Jaguars will keep Trevor Lawrence in 2026
Mike Sando of The Athletic took a look a the outcome of several NFL games in Week 7. After the loss to the Los Angeles Rams, he wondered whether Trevor Lawrence was a good fit for the Jags long term, noting that the fifth-year quarterback may not be a match for head coach Liam Coen.
"The Jaguars cannot relate just yet, but their day could be approaching," Sando said when talking about quarterbacks Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa. "They have a first-year coach (Liam Coen) and a winning record (4-3). With coaches and executives around the league nearly unanimous in their belief that Lawrence lacks consistent accuracy, upper-tier production could be elusive."
Sando continued, "One exec wondered how long Coen will want to stay the course with the laid-back Lawrence after working with the uber-competitive Baker Mayfield and Matthew Stafford in Coen's previous stops. Tagovailoa and Murray fit similar profiles. No one sees them as natural leaders."
Later, Sando points out that Lawrence has a fully guaranteed salary of $37 million next year. He doesn't add much, but he may be implying that the Jaguars will need to make a decision whether to keep the former Clemson Tiger or cut their losses.
Why the Jaguars need to get the most out of Trevor Lawrence
Baker Mayfield immediately got better under Liam Coen. But his situation is a bit different than Trevor Lawrence's. For starters, he had a better supporting cast, with neither Chris Godwin or Mike Evans struggling with drops. On top of that, Mayfield has three more years of experience in the league than his Jaguars counterpart.
Having said that, Lawrence does need to turn the corner at some point in 2025 if he wants chatter about his future in Jacksonville to stop. The noise isn't neccessarily loud right now, but questions about his availabililty have certainly pop up here and there. And unless he plays better, they won't go away anytime soon.
On the other hand, the Jags must do his part. They must fix his protection up front. He's certainly had his fair share of bad throws, but he's been pressured at an alarming rate. Moreover, Jacksonville leads the NFL in drops. The Knoxville, Tennesee native's numbers would look much better if he got help from his supporting cast.
The bottom line is that Trevor Lawrence will need to operate with a sense of urgency once the Jaguars return from their BYE. If he doesn't, they'll need to begin to weight in their options.