Most rookie quarterbacks have their ups and downs, and for number one overall pick, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, that has been the case after three games.
On Sunday against the Cardinals, Lawrence was 22/39 for 219 yards and one touchdown, but that was overshadowed by his two interceptions, one that was returned for a touchdown and two fumbles as the Jaguars fall to 0-3 after losing to the Cardinals 31-19 at TIAA Bank Field.
Jacksonville had a 19-17 lead in the third quarter, but Byron Murphy’s pick-6 put the Cardinals up for good in the third quarter. The Jaguars would turn the ball over on two of their final three possessions.
“Gosh, I’m sick,” Lawrence said after the game. “I feel like we should have won that game. But yeah, nothing changes. I thought we got a lot better today, and you could tell there were some sparks. We made some plays. Collectively, the defense, gosh, they played great, especially against the weapons over there that the Cardinals have. You can’t ask for any more out of that. Same thing, just got to be more consistent. That pick-six killed us, obviously. That’s all on me.”
Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer was happy with the team’s efforts despite the loss.
“I just want to win so damn bad for our players and for Jacksonville, the crowd was — I appreciate them coming out and the noise,” Meyer said. “We’re going to get this thing going, and I know I said that last week, but damn, they played hard. Our players played their asses off today. “
Lawrence has nine turnovers after three games and became the fifth quarterback in NFL history with multiple interceptions in his first three career games, but even with the turnovers, Lawrence is not going to be timid.
“I had one today that turned into a pick-six. Just can’t do that,” Lawrence said. “The other ones, ball security in the pocket on the last play of the game that they ended up stripping, that’s one I can learn from. You learn from all of them, but you can’t let it change the way you play. As far as making better decisions, that does need to change for sure, but I’ve got to be the same guy. I still have to go play. I can’t play timid, and not take any shots or chances.”
Despite the turnovers, Meyer is not concerned about Lawrence.
“I worry about everything,” Meyer said. “But Trevor is a unique individual, and he competes like –competed his tail off. We’ve just got to — when something is not there, throw it away, and one of them was not his fault. One of them was a dropped pass. You can’t do that with a young quarterback… He’s the most consistent — one of the most consistent players I’ve been around.”
Lawrence is just like any other rookie quarterback at this point. He’ll get better, and ultimately, things will get better for Jacksonville. However, this season will be a struggle, which should not be surprising to anyone.
Notes:
-Jaguars WR Jamal Agnew returned a missed field goal 109 yards for a TD on the final play of the second quarter, tied for the longest TD in NFL history. Agnew, who also returned a kickoff 102 yards for a TD in Week 2, becomes the ninth player in NFL history with multiple 100-plus yard special teams returns in the same season.
Agnew discussed what happened on that touchdown:
“I mean, that’s probably one of my favorite ones,” he said. “I mean, I’ve never done it before, but I mean, it’s all offensive linemen and probably a couple tight ends and then the kicker. My thing was obviously I know [Matt] Prater from playing in Detroit. I know he’s capable of that, but he was going into the wind, it was a 68-yarder. I was like, ‘If he doesn’t get this, I’m probably going to score.’ And everybody—they made the wall for me on the left side of the field and it was just that spark we needed before halftime. We just couldn’t get the job done.”
-Jaguars RB James Robinson recorded a season-high 134 scrimmage yards (88 rushing and 46 receiving yards), marking his 17th consecutive game with at least 50 scrimmage yards. Robinson, who has tallied 50-plus scrimmage yards in every game of his NFL career, has 1,562 career scrimmage yards and joins RBs Fred Taylor and Leonard Fournette as the only players in franchise history with at least 1,500 scrimmage yards through 17 career games.
