Is Trevor Lawrence truly a star quarterback? That is the question many have been asking ever since he received a historic five-year, $275 million contract extension from the Jacksonville Jaguars that will make him the highest-paid player in NFL history in terms of annual salary along with the Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow.
Lawrence is certainly being paid like a star, but his production over time doesn’t necessarily suggest he deserves that type of money. He played very well during the second half of the 2022 season, but he didn’t build on it last year.
Dakota Randall of Pro Football Network recently ranked the top quarterbacks in the NFL, and he placed Lawrence in the middle of the pack at No. 14.
“Will the real Trevor Lawrence please stand up?” wrote Randall. “One minute, he looks like a top-five quarterback; the next, he looks deserving of a benching.
“Lawrence has the talent to be an elite quarterback, but he needs to cut down on the mistakes — 39 interceptions in three seasons — and stop playing hero ball.
“This is a big year for Lawrence.”
Can Trevor Lawrence bounce back in 2024?
The former Clemson University standout was the subject of lots of hype and big expectations when he was the No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft. But he struggled mightily as a rookie, completing just 59.6 percent of his passes while throwing an NFL-high 17 interceptions.
His performance over the first eight games of the 2022 season was also anemic. But he came on strong afterward, throwing for 2,273 yards and 15 touchdowns against just two interceptions in the final nine games of the schedule, seven of which were wins for Jacksonville.
In the Wild Card Round of the playoffs that year against the Los Angeles Chargers, Lawrence overcame a very shaky start in which he threw four interceptions in the first one and a half quarters to throw four touchdown passes afterward and lead his team to victory after it trailed 27-0.
It may be a little more difficult for him to raise his production this coming season. Wide receiver Calvin Ridley, who led the Jaguars in receiving yards and touchdowns, left to join the Tennessee Titans, and fellow wideout Christian Kirk hasn’t developed into a legitimate alpha receiver.
Last season, Trevor Lawrence’s overall numbers weren’t better than they were in 2022, and he threw almost twice as many interceptions (14 in 2023 compared to eight in 2022) despite playing one fewer game.
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