Category: Gardner Minshew

Jags’ Gardner Minshew says No. 2 role ‘is not an option’ for him in battle with Trevor Lawrence

The Jags took QB Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 overall pick, but Gardner Minshew II says he still plans to start despite that.

While starting a new quarterback Week 1 feels like a certainty for the Jacksonville Jaguars, one thing fans can bank on is Gardner Minshew II putting up a fight to reclaim the QB1 spot that was once his. During organized team activities and minicamp, the third-year quarterback looked like the best signal-caller on the roster not named Trevor Lawrence, which could give him plenty of momentum for training camp.

While joining Chris Long as a guest on the “Greenlight Podcast,” Minshew seemed to think he’d be able to pick up where he left off this offseason. And though Lawrence was taken with the No. 1 overall pick, Minshew said not being a starter wasn’t an option for him heading into the 2021 season.

After watching Minshew for three years, fans of the Jags shouldn’t have expected him to say anything less. After all, this is the same player who tried to break his hand to get a medical redshirt during his time at East Carolina.

However, as valiant as Minshew’s effort may be, it’s hard to imagine that a prospect who draft pundits viewed in the same tier as Andrew Luck won’t be the Day 1 starter. Lawrence certainly put in the work with his teammates during his time away from the facility (in Jacksonville and at Clemson) to pick up where he left off at minicamp after finishing the process on a high note.

Truth be told, it feels as though Minshew’s best chance to start will be with another team. There was trade interest for him this spring, however, Jags coach Urban Meyer came out to say the team would be holding on to Minshew (at least for now).

With Meyer set to lead his team through his first-ever training camp as an NFL coach, hanging on to Minshew could prove to be smart because he undoubtedly has a mindset that will push Lawrence. At the same time, Minshew could put together a solid preseason, which could garner better trade options than before. Even if it doesn’t, the Jags could enter Week 1 of the regular season with one of the best backup quarterbacks in the NFL.

 

Jags’ Gardner Minshew named a top-10 backup QB by CBS Sports

Gardner Minshew has played in a lot of games since being drafted and has flashed at times to the point where most feels he is a top-10 QB2.

While the Jacksonville Jaguars have yet to crown anyone their QB1, there is little doubt that it will be No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence. If that happens, the Jags would be put in a situation where they would have one of the better backups in the league in Gardner Minshew II, that is, if he remains on the roster.

Since being drafted in 2019, Minshew has started in 20 games, and in the early stages of his career, he had many wondering if he was starter material. Long story short, the Jags figured out his flaws and limitations last season when he started in eight games, despite him having to miss time with a hand injury.

Still, even with Minshew proving to be more of a No. 2 quarterback, he’s also garnered the respect of the national media, including the respect of CBS Sports writer Cody Benjamin. In his rankings of top backup quarterbacks, Benjamin ranked Minshew 10th, placing him above notables like Taysom Hill and Mitchell Trubisky.

10. Gardner Minshew (Jaguars)

He doesn’t have the physical skill set to rival other QBs, and you might rather have somebody like Taysom Hill to keep defenses off guard, but Minshew has never lacked poise. Look at the numbers he put up in Jacksonville. He’ll stick around for a while.

Some of the notables ranked ahead of Minshew included Marcus Mariota and  Tyrod Taylor, and some unproven players like Mac Jones.

As for Minshew, his performance over the last two years has been enough to cause teams to call about a trade, though the Jags announced that they weren’t looking to move him on March 19. Since, he’s continued on by having a decent showing in the spring, which may make it even harder for the Jags’ coaches to let him go.

In terms of Benjamin’s rankings, the argument could be made that Minshew could’ve probably been slotted closer to the top-5, but tenth still isn’t that far off the mark. The bigger question will be whether the Jags have the luxury of keeping him behind Lawrence as a team could come calling in terms of a trade. If the compensation is a fourth-round pick or higher the Jags would have something to think about, but for now, it appears they want him on the roster for training camp.

Brian Schottenheimer tight-lipped on Jags’ starting quarterback situation

Though Trevor Lawrence is expected to win the job, the Jags’ passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach said no decision has been made.

Ever since Jacksonville secured the first-overall pick back in December, it was assumed that Trevor Lawrence would be the starting quarterback this fall. Though the rookie is well on his way after some impressive moments at minicamp despite recovering from shoulder surgery, it appears he hasn’t done enough to lock up the job, at least at this point.

According to ESPN’s Mike DiRocco, passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Brian Schottenheimer wouldn’t give a definitive answer when asked if there’s been a decision made.

“It’s still too early to say how this thing’s going to play out,” Schottenheimer said on Wednesday.

While there’s certainly some smoke and mirrors going on here, it’s far from a foregone conclusion that Lawrence will be ready to start Week 1. It’s not like the Jaguars necessarily need him to be, either.

He’s clearly the future, but the Jags still have a quarterback on the roster who’s thrown for 37 touchdowns and just 11 interceptions in two years in Gardner Minshew II. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Minshew wants to win the starting job in camp this fall. He’s a clear trade option for Jacksonville, but if no deal materializes and Lawrence isn’t ready for the opener against Houston, the cupboard is nowhere near bare.

Still, it would be at least a minor upset if Lawrence doesn’t start Week 1. Though he’s dealing with lingering issues from the surgery, it seems he’s getting closer and closer to 100% each day. He should be fully healthy by the fall, and it would likely take a herculean effort from Minshew to unseat him as the presumed starter, assuming he’s still on the roster at that point.

What would it take for the Jags to deal Gardner Minshew?

The Jaguars would reportedly take a fifth or sixth-round pick for the two-year starter after drafting his apparent replacement.

For all of the struggles the Jacksonville Jaguars have had throughout the last two seasons, it’s hard to place much of the blame on Gardner Minshew II. The third-year quarterback and former sixth-round made the best of a bad situation, tossing 37 touchdowns to 11 interceptions in 2019 and 2020.

But his time as Jacksonville’s starter appears to be coming to an end, as a 1-15 season resulted in the selection of Trevor Lawrence with the first overall pick, seemingly ending Minshew’s chances of securing the job long-term.

This, paired with the fact that Jacksonville paid former San Francisco passer C.J. Beathard like a No. 2 quarterback this offseason, would seem to indicate that Minshew doesn’t factor into the team’s plans. But his play has still been solid, especially given the circumstances, and that fact makes him a prime option for the Jags to trade.

It’s been expected that the Jaguars would deal him, with many thinking they would try to acquire more draft picks in 2021. But no deal came to fruition before the draft, though according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the 49ers showed some interest before trading for the third overall pick, which they used to draft North Dakota State quarterback Trey Lance.

However, Minshew has reportedly looked better than Beathard in organized team activities so far (though the pads aren’t on yet), and Fowler reported that after missing time last week, he wants to compete for the starting job with Lawrence. If coach Urban Meyer determines that Minshew is the better backup option than Beathard, that could complicate the plans at the position a bit.

Still, Minshew seems to want to be more than a backup, and according to sources of Fowler, Jacksonville could be willing to take a fifth or a sixth-round pick to part ways with the player who took the NFL by storm in 2019.

That sounds about right, though if Minshew is out-performing Beathard, the Jags could potentially get more in return for his services. If offered a fourth-round pick, it’s hard to imagine Jacksonville wouldn’t move on from Minshew.

While Lawrence could be 100% healthy from labrum surgery soon, having Minshew around in the meantime seems like a smart plan until Lawrence is fully recovered. Until that happens, there appears to be a slim chance for Minshew to start again, which is why there is some value in keeping him around.

Jags QB group listed among ‘unproven’ tier of USA TODAY rankings

Mike Jones from USA TODAY included the Jaguars in the “unproven” section in his rankings of every quarterback situation in the NFL.

Jacksonville made a lot of moves this offseason with a new coaching staff in town led by Urban Meyer, but none of them were more important for the future of the franchise than the selection of Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the first overall pick. That move gives Jacksonville a potential franchise player at the position for the first time in nearly two decades.

But as good as Lawrence projects to be as a pro (he was considered a generational prospect pre-draft), he’s never actually taken a snap in an NFL game. For this reason, USA TODAY’s Mike Jones places the Jags in the “unproven” category in his rankings of teams’ quarterback situations. Other teams in that category are the Philadelphia Eagles, Miami Dolphins, Carolina Panthers, and New York Jets.

Here’s what Jones said about the Jags.

Everyone has known Lawrence would go first overall to Jacksonville for so long that the Jaguars’ selection felt anticlimactic. Urban Meyer plans for Lawrence to start Day 1. Long regarded as a potential generational talent, Lawrence has lofty expectations to live up to.

Though Lawrence is certainly expected to be starting by the end of the season and likely by Day 1, one thing Jones didn’t mention is the rest of Jacksonvilles’ quarterback group. It has a pretty nice duo behind Lawrence, as well, between Gardner Minshew, the starter for the last two years, and C.J. Beathard, a free-agent signing who has played well filling in for the injury-prone Jimmy Garoppolo.

It’s very likely Jacksonville will try to make a deal involving Minshew, but considering that didn’t happen before the draft, it’s becoming more likely that he will remain on the roster.

The Jags’ situation may be “unproven,” but they would probably take their depth chart over any of their contemporaries in the category.

Poll: Should the Jaguars trade Gardner Minshew?

Given interest around the league for the young quarterback, it may make sense for Jacksonville to try to make a deal involving Minshew.

It wasn’t just the mustache that thrust Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew into the national spotlight. Sure, his style, charisma and laid-back attitude played a large role in endearing him not just to the Jacksonville fanbase but also football fans at large. At the end of the day, though, Minshew Mania would have never taken off if it weren’t for his play early in his NFL career.

Jags fans weren’t even supposed to know much about Minshew. He was backing up Nick Foles, who the team had invested a four-year, $88 million contract into that offseason. But Foles got hurt in the season opener and Minshew stepped in. He started in 12 games in 2019, finishing with 3,271 yards, 21 touchdowns and six interceptions. Though he was just a sixth-round pick, the former Washington State quarterback showed enough to secure the starting job heading into 2020.

But things have changed now. Minshew wasn’t terrible last season but he battled injuries, and in the eight games he started, his yardage total decreased by more than 1,000 yards from a year ago. He threw 16 touchdowns with five interceptions on the year.

The Jaguars went 1-15, and now the team has the first overall pick, which will almost certainly be used to select a franchise quarterback in Trevor Lawrence. It seems Minshew no longer has a future with the team beyond a backup role, and considering he’s not even 25 yet, he may be looking for another opportunity.

The Jaguars seemed to cement this with the signing of former San Francisco 49ers backup C.J. Beathard, who saw a good amount of action in 2020 after Jimmy Garoppolo sustained an ankle injury. Though Minshew would certainly be among the better backup quarterbacks in the NFL, if there’s acceptable trade value for him (which is certainly a possibility), it would make a lot of sense for Jacksonville to try and deal him.

What do you think, Jags fans? Should the team try to trade Gardner Minshew? Or should it keep him on the roster for the time being as a backup/competition for Lawrence? Let us know in the poll down below.

(function(d,s,id,u){
if (d.getElementById(id)) return;
var js, sjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],
t = Math.floor(new Date().getTime() / 1000000);
js=d.createElement(s); js.id=id; js.async=1; js.src=u+’?’+t;
sjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, sjs);
}(document, ‘script’, ‘os-widget-jssdk’, ‘https://www.opinionstage.com/assets/loader.js’));

 

C.J. Beathard’s contract is a 2-year deal that guarantees $2.7M

The contract details for new Jaguars quarterback C.J. Beathard have been revealed, and it’s not a good sign for Gardner Minshew.

The situation in Jacksonville continues to look even more precarious for 2019 and 2020 starting quarterback Gardner Minshew II. The Jaguars are already expected to select quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the first overall pick, and though Minshew remains on the roster for now and the team said it wasn’t looking to trade him at the moment, that move could now be imminent.

On Thursday, the Jags signed former San Francisco 49ers quarterback C.J. Beathard to a two-year, $5 million contract. The 27-year-old, who was taken in the third round in 2017, saw action in six games this year after starter Jimmy Garoppolo was lost for the season. He completed 63.5% of his passes while tossing for 787 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions.

According to a report from NFL insider Ian Rapoport, the contract guarantees Beathard $2.5 million.

Considering Jacksonville just went after a backup quarterback who’s seen action in 19 games over four seasons and has gotten quite a few opportunities (he’s attempted 497 passes on his career), it seems Minshew’s time with the team may be running short.

Minshew has a lot of starting experience (much of it positive), and given his age and development as a sixth-round pick, there will almost certainly be interest in acquiring him. And though he brought a lot of excitement to the city and franchise for a time, if the Jags can acquire more draft capital out of him, it seems they likely will.

Urban Meyer says Jags aren’t looking to trade QB Gardner Minshew ‘at this point’

While many quarterbacks are on the move in the NFL, it appears Gardner Minshew will be staying put with the Jaguars — at least for now.

The NFL is going through a lot of movement when it comes to quarterbacks this season as several teams will start new names under center, and others will be acquiring notable backups. The Jacksonville Jaguars have found themselves in these discussions, not just because they are likely to draft Trevor Lawrence, but because a report surfaced that teams had been calling about Gardner Minshew II.

However, despite those calls, the Jags appear to have Minshew in their plans for now. On Friday morning, coach Urban Meyer told the media that the team wasn’t fielding calls for the third-year player, who he had the chance to meet with this week.

“At this point, no. At this point, I know Gardner [Minshew II] a little bit,” Meyer said. “He came in yesterday; we had a good visit. That’s the second time I spent time with him. This is all kind of new to me. I’m used to spending about five, six hours a day with our quarterback. January, February, that’s the days you get your quarterback ready to go. You can’t do that in the NFL. There’s a lot of anticipation about the first pick.

“I understand there’s a lot of conversation out there, but there’s been no decisions made. Gardner’s done some very good things here in Jacksonville and he’s a competitive maniac, which I really appreciate that about him. So, there’s been no decisions made. Yesterday was the first lengthy meeting we had and we’re going to continue that here for the next few weeks.”

While things could change in terms of the Jags’ stance on Minshew (especially if they get Alex Smith), keeping him on the roster for the regular season would give them an experienced backup. The 2019 sixth-round selection has seen a lot of time on the field as a starter (20 games). Most of those starts came as a rookie (12) and eight occurred last season.

Minshew will enter this season with a 7-13 record as a starter. Statistically, he’s registered a completion rate of 62.9% (501-of-797) while passing for 5,530 yards, 37 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. His rookie campaign, in particular, appears to be what caught the eyes of scouts around the league. With that being the case, other organizations will likely continue to monitor the situation, though the Jags aren’t actively shopping Minshew.

Report: Jags receiving calls from teams for Gardner Minshew

The movement of quarterbacks in the NFL could be crazy this season and Gardner Minshew II could be a part of the chaos.

The Jacksonville Jaguars have already gotten involved in the trade market by acquiring defensive lineman Malcom Brown from the New Orleans Saints. With plenty of time left before the draft, the Jags could also get in on shipping off some players themselves, which would help them add more selections. 

With quarterbacks being shipped all over the league, one of the most popular names in trade discussions has been third-year quarterback Gardner Minshew, who has started in 23 games since being drafted by the Jags in 2019. According to Ian Rapoport, his significant time on the field has led to teams reaching out to the Jags about a trade, which now gives Jags fans another interesting situation to monitor.

Minshew, 24, was drafted by the Jags in the sixth-round two seasons ago out of Washington State. He ended up seeing the field behind center in his first-ever regular season game after Nick Foles broke his clavicle against the Kansas City Chiefs Week 1 of the 2019 season.

That led to Minshew starting all the way up to Week 9, but he was benched when Foles returned from injured reserve. Unfortunately for the veteran, he wouldn’t hold on to the job long and Minshew reclaimed his QB1 spot Week 14 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Minshew put together a respectable rookie season when 2019 was over, winning the Pepsi Rookie of the Week Award seven times while going 285-of-470 (60.6%) for 3,271 yards, 21 touchdowns, and six picks. Unfortunately, 2020 didn’t provide similar success for Minshew (or the Jags as a whole) as he dealt with a hand injury that sidelined him and regressed from his rookie campaign in general. In a season where the Jags would end up going 1-15, Minshew was 216-of-327 (66.1%) for 2,259 yards, 16 touchdowns, and five picks.

It’s unclear whether or not Minshew is being looked at for a starting role or as a backup, but clearly, teams see potential in him. With Trevor Lawrence, likely coming to Jacksonville Minshew’s chances to start for the Jags are slim as we approach the regular season, though it certainly doesn’t hurt to have him as a backup. Time will tell if an organization gives the Jags a deal they can’t pass up for the young quarterback, but it certainly wouldn’t be shocking to see him on another team when looking at the quarterback transactions league-wide.

Jim Nagy thinks the Patriots should trade for Gardner Minshew

The director of the Senior Bowl thinks the next quarterback in New England should be Jacksonville’s 2019 sixth-round pick.

With Trevor Lawrence all but guaranteed to be coming to Jacksonville, the media darling of the 2019 NFL season, Gardner Minshew, will likely return to the bench. Minshew would be one of the league’s better backup quarterbacks, but considering his age (just 24) and production over the last two seasons, it’s hard to imagine he’s seen his last chance to start at the highest level.

If the trade value is there for Minshew, the Jaguars could try to make a move and sign a veteran backup such as Alex Smith. But the question is, would any teams in need of a quarterback be willing to deal for Minshew? Jim Nagy, a former NFL scout and currently the director of the Senior Bowl, thinks Minshew would be a great fit with one of the league’s most successful franchises.

“I am a big believer in Gardner,” Nagy said on “Dale and Keefe” of WEEI Wednesday. “Whether it is the Patriots or somebody else, I think it is a really smart move to float a third (-round pick). If you could get him for a third or fourth-round pick, that’s an easy trade.

“ […] He knows how to play the position and he is mobile. He can make plays with his legs. He can run around and create. He’s got great leadership. There’s a ton to like there. I really hope Gardner gets somewhere that invests in him.”

Nagy certainly has a point that Minshew was destined to fail in 2020. They traded away veterans Calais Campbell, Yannick Ngakoue, and A.J. Bouye, and lost two of their free agent signings in Rodney Gunter (retired/ heart condition) Al Woods (voluntary COVID-19 opt out). This gave them arguably the worst roster in the league and the team ended up with a 1-15 record. Minshew’s true level of ability probably falls somewhere in-between the flashes of brilliance he showed as a rookie and the malaise he demonstrated last season.

If there were legitimate interest from New England, it would make sense for Jacksonville to pursue a deal. It’s in full-on rebuild mode right now, and if it can stockpile additional picks in the first two days of the draft, it absolutely should.

But would the Pats want to make this deal? Well, the first year of the Cam Newton experiment was an abject failure. And even if he returns, coach Bill Belichick will likely try to bring in another option, whether it be through free agency or the draft. New England picks 15th, and there could be three or four quarterbacks off the board by then.

It doesn’t appear that there will be many free-agent options, so acquiring a young quarterback with starting experience could be a tantalizing opportunity for Belichick, who is coming off his first losing season with the Pats since 2000.