![Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) makes a change at the line during an NFL training camp second session at the Miller Electric Center, Thursday, July 24, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_3521,h_1980/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/55/01k0ywtvxgte75mmatm3.jpg "Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) makes a change at the line during an NFL training camp second session at the Miller Electric Center, Thursday, July 24, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]")
Following an underwhelming 2024 campaign, the spotlight has been on Trevor Lawrence, and rightly so. The quarterback is coming off a pair of underwhelming seasons and will need to play at a high level if the Jacksonville Jaguars want to steer the ship in the right direction. An NFL analyst believes he'll pull it off.
NFL Media had a round table where its analysts discussed the most improved teams since the end of 2024. The Chicago Bears, the San Francisco 49ers, and the Las Vegas Raiders all earned consideration for the list, but Jags alumnus Maurice Jones-Drew believes that Jacksonville takes the cake, citing the arrival of head coach Liam Coen and the role he'll play in Trevor Lawrence's eventual success or lack thereof next season. Below is the skinny.
"Trevor Lawrence has acknowledged he needs to 'turn it on' this fall after an injury-marred season that saw him go 2-8 as a starter. He knows it. The Jags know it," Jones-Drew wrote. "Hell, the whole (football) world knows it. That's why the franchise spent the offseason building around its franchise quarterback. Jacksonville hired proven play-caller Liam Coen to help jump-start the offense, retooled the offensive line and brought in more playmakers, including two-way star Travis Hunter, who could make a legitimate case to win both rookie of the year awards in 2025."
MJD continued, "If the defense improves at all--it should--there's a good chance the Jags double their 2024 win total (four). And let's face it, winning the division isn't out of the question because, well, the AFC South isn't exactly brimming with elite quarterbacks right now."
Lawrence, the first overall pick in 2021, struggled as a rookie but showed significant improvement in 2022, helping the Jaguars secure the division and earn a playoff spot. He built off his strong finish to his sophomore year and got off to an encouraging start in 2022. Unfortunately, injuries hampered his performance in the second half of the season.
Expected to bounce back in 2024, Lawrence instead regressed for a myriad of reasons. Coaching certainly played a role, and a shoulder injury cut his season short. That said, he was somewhat underwhelming before spraining his AC.
Now, the former Clemson Tiger is expected to bounce back, and to ensure that it happens, the team's brass beefed up the offensive trenches. Moreover, they added Travis Hunter and Dyami Brown to his arsenal of weapons, so the fifth-year quarterback is entering the 2025 season with the best supporting cast he's arguably had in his NFL career.
Circling back to Jones-Drew's comments about the state of the quarterback position in the division, he isn't wrong. C.J. Stroud is expected to rebound after dealing with a sophomore slump in 2024. On the other hand, Cam Ward is an intriguing talent, but it will take the Tennessee Titans a couple of seasons to truly become a threat in the AFC South.
Last but not least is the Indianapolis Colts. Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones are currently battling for the starting job, and as the saying goes, if you have two quarterbacks, you truly have none (with a few specific exceptions, e.g., Brett Favre-Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Drew Bledsoe).
Related: Remembering the day the Jaguars ruined the end of Dan Marion's NFL career
The Jaguars are counting on Trevor Lawrence to put it all together
Trevor Lawrence hasn't been outright bad in past seasons, but he hasn't been consistent either. The team's lack of support certainly had a role, but there's also a point in which in you cannot just keep pointing fingers and must take accountability. In No.16's case, the biggest issue holding him back has been that he's struggled to stay healthy.
You could argue that players can predict injuries in a collision sport such as football. However, availability is the best ability, and if you want to make a statement, you must take the football field on a consistent basis, something Lawrence has failed to do the past two years. Working in his favor is that he's fully recovered from the surgery he underwent to repair his shoulder.
Now, Lawrence, in his own words, is the healthiest his been in a while. If that's the case, nothing is impeding him from making the most of the changes Jacksonville made to the roster and its coaching staff.
Similarly, the Knoxville, Tennessee native is in a position to reclaim his spot in the conversation about the top-10 quarterbacks in the league. And if he does, there's a good chance, like Maurice Jones stated, that the Jaguars seize the underwhelming AFC South next season.