Trevor Lawrence: Not worthy of the first pick in the Draft
The NFL is an unforgiving battleground. Rookies fresh from college are forced to adapt to the professional game or be left behind.
Throughout his tenure at Clemson, Trevor Lawrence was labelled as a once in a generation quarterback. It’s easy to understand why. During his high school career, his record was 52-2 and at college it was 34-2, including a national championship title.
One and a half years in and Lawrence has just lost his 20th NFL game for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He threw the game-sealing interception to Denver’s cornerback, K’waun Williams, and extended the team’s losing streak to five games.
While a modest degree of leeway can be spared for Lawrence’s mere 23 games in the NFL, he has not come close to what has been expect of him.
What is a ‘generational quarterback’?
When this phrase is thrown around pub tables, Peyton Manning is usually the first name that enters the conversation. The two-time Super Bowl winning, Hall of Fame quarter back went on to become arguably the greatest to ever play the position.
Manning recorded a very similar start to his NFL career as Lawrence. He went 3-13 in his rookie season for Indianapolis but that’s where the comparison ends. Through his next four years, including his second and third seasons, he was selected to the Pro Bowl.
What is important to note is that Manning let the Colts to seven game winning drives, including six fourth quarter comebacks in his second year. Manning evolved into a game winner, who was envied by the rest of the league.
Andrew Luck is the other obvious ‘generational quarterback.’ As he gained followers as Stanford, he was described as the best quarterback prospect in modern NFL Draft history. Luck led his Colts to the playoffs on each of this first three seasons with the team, picking up from where Manning left off. Luck is admired because he performed highly at college and didn’t let up once he was drafted, something Lawrence has been unable to replicate.
Both quarterbacks put their respective franchises on their backs early on and produced consistently good performances. Something Jacksonville has not seen since Mark Brunell.
We’re not in Clemson anymore
Lawrence was taken first in the draft because he was a proven winner. He reached the College Football Playoff National Championship game twice, winning in 2018, handing Nick Saban his worst ever loss as Alabama Head Coach.
Throughout his college career, Lawrence was surrounded with stars, on both sides of the ball. He came into a team that had won the national championship in 2016 and won their divisional championship every year from 2015-20. Lawrence has had a safety net of talent every step of his journey. Lawrence did not bring success to Clemson, he slotted into system that had already been a top programme but also had the benefits of playing in a weak division. He has never needed to step far outside of his comfort zone or exceed expectations.
Now that he’s in the NFL, Lawrence has been tasked with turning around a franchise, something he has no experience of doing, and he’s currently failing at it. His Clemson teammates were just as important to his success as he was.
The Urban Meyer effect?
It is worth noting that Lawrence spent his miserable first year under the premiership of alleged bully and disgraced coach, Urban Meyer. Myer operated an elite programme at Ohio State but never managed to develop quarterbacks ready to enter the league at a decent level. It should not come as a surprise that he was unable to do anything with Lawrence during his brief stint in Jacksonville.
Lawrence now has a new safety net, in the form of elite coaches. Head Coach, Doug Pederson took the Philadelphia Eagles to their first Super Bowl title and he has nine seasons as quarterback in the league under his belt. His new positional coach, Mike McCoy, who helped Manning and Philip Rivers win AP Comeback Player of the Year.
After an offseason and eight games with these minds, one would be forgiven for being impatient with Lawrence’s inconsistent and lacklustre performances. He is playing to a level that we would expect from any other second year quarterback, far below his pre-draft expectations.
Lawrence has been unable to bridge the gap between college and the NFL. Since coming into the league, he is 0-11 when throwing an interception and has the worst winning percentage of any quarterback taken first overall through their first 25 games. When the game is on the line and the fanbase turns to player to score the winning touchdown, Lawrence is not their man. To show this little progression from a player of his supposed calibre is worrying.
Something must change quickly in Jacksonville, otherwise, they will have wasted a vital pick on an average quarterback. Other first round options included last year’s defensive rookie of the year, Micah Parsons as well as elite wide receivers such as Ja’Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith. The latter of which won the Heisman Trophy, beating Lawrence into second place.
When a quarterback is taken in the first round of the draft, let alone the first overall pick, teams envisage building a roster around this stable centrepiece. Trevor Lawrence has shown nothing that would inspire a fanbase that he is their franchise quarterback, capable of leading the team to the playoffs and beyond.
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