One of the most disappointing storylines surrounding the Jacksonville Jaguars last year was Trevor Lawrence and his struggles. Expected to bounce back after an underwhelming 2023 campaign, the former Clemson Tiger instead managed to regress even more. Granted, he wasn't the only reason the Jags went 3-14 but wasn't able to lift them either. His season was ultimately cut short when he suffered a labrum injury that required surgery.
Lawrence is now rehabbing and will most likely benefit from the arrival of new head coach Liam Coem. That said, he must prove that the last two years were an outlier and not a sign of things to come. This begs the question, how does No. 16 stack up against other NFL quarterbacks? According to a recent ranking, not so well.
Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report recently ranked all starting quarterback in the NFL and gave Lawrence the 21st spot, noting that the fifth-year quarterback had his worst season since he was a rookie. He goes on to say that things could get dire for the Jags if Lawrence doesn't turn things around with Coen as his head coach.
"Not that long ago, it appeared that Lawrence was headed for stardom. But after signing a five-year, $275 million contract extension last summer, Lawrence struggled through the worst season since his rookie year. The Jaguars hired Liam Coen as head coach in large part because of Coen's success with Baker Mayfield in Tampa. If Lawrence doesn't turn things around in 2025, the Jags could be staring down the barrel of some very difficult personnel decisions."
So which quarterbacks popped up ahead of Lawrence? Tua Tagovailoa (20), Kyler Murray (19), and even 2024 draft pick Caleb Williams (18). You know things are bad when Bo Nix (17) and Geno Smith (16) earned a higher spot than the Knoxville, Tennessee native.
What's happened to Trevor Lawrence?
After playing like a top-10 quarterback in 2022, Trevor Lawrence was expected to keep making strides the following year. However, the team relied too much on him as the running game was nearly non-existent. To make matters worse, his supporting cast was less than ideal.
And once injuries took a toll on Lawrence and other key contributors in the second half of 2023, the Jags' dearth of depth across the roster was exposed, and they failed to make the playoffs.
Lawrence spent last offseason recovering and was expected to reclaim his place as a top-10 quarterback. Unfortunately, his fundamentals weren't great and his decision-making wasn't as sharp as it had been in other years. He then suffered a labrum injury that forced him to miss eight games.
The Jaguars hired Liam Coen to get the most out of Trevor Lawrence
During their head-coaching search, the Jacksonville Jaguars made it a priority to find someone who could get the most out of Lawrence. Owner Shad Khan said as much during Coen's introductory press conference, pointing out that the quarterback position is "the bedrock of today's NFL."
So how can Coen help Lawrence? The new Jaguars head coach said during his introductory press conference that he prefers players over plays, meaning that he'll look for ways to maximize his players instead of forcing them to fit his scheme.
When it comes to Lawrence, Coen and whoever he hires as his offensive coordinator will need to focus on the quarterbacks' fundamentals and areas where he struggled last year. The Jacksonville head coach will also take advantage of his quarterback's accuracy in deep passes. That could in turn benefit Brian Thomas Jr., who showed the ability to stretch the field in his rookie season.
Keep in mind that it wasn't long ago that Baker Mayfield was seen as damaged goods after a promising start to his NFL career. With Liam Coen as his head coach, he posted career bests for several meaningful categories, including completion rate and passing touchdowns last season.
This is to say that if anyone can make Trevor Lawrence like the top-10 quarterback he's shown he can be, it's Liam Coen.