The anticipation for the 2021 NFL season couldn’t be any higher for the Jacksonville Jaguars and their fans, who have a direct path to Trevor Lawrence in the draft. While he has yet to take a snap in the NFL, many feel he can make the team significantly better in a short amount of time.
Throughout the offseason, there have been many to come out and praise Lawrence, including some current players. The latest to join that mix of people was pending free-agent offensive tackle Trent Williams, who stated that Lawrence might have an above-average rookie season in 2021 on “The Cris Collinsworth Podcast.”
“I think any team that has a quarterback that we can say ‘That’s a Day 1 starter” right now in March is ahead of the curve,” Williams said when asked if he’d prefer to play for a rookie or veteran quarterback. “Getting a quarterback is by far the hardest thing to accomplish in the NFL.
So, any team right now that has a quarterback who you could pencil in as a Day 1 starter, you can’t really call that a rebuild process because you have the main piece in place, right? If you don’t have a quarterback, it’s like who knows how long it would take to get a Trevor Lawrence. You know these guys aren’t just growing on trees and they aren’t accessible every draft.”
Williams would know about playing with a rookie quarterback because he did it with the Washington Football Team in 2012 when Robert Griffin II was selected second overall. The team was able to go 10-6, and while they were eliminated in the wild-card round, Griffin deserved as much credit as anyone for getting them there.
Williams continued to explain that Lawrence is dangerous because he has a mix of natural passing ability and mobility in the pocket. Of course, this was something he witnessed in 2012 as Griffin rushed for 815 yards and garnered seven rushing touchdowns.
“A quarterback like Trevor Lawrence, as a rookie, I think it’s not going to be like playing with a normal rookie quarterback,” Williams added. “I think the type of player that [Lawrence] is, he is ahead of the curve and I think he’ll be a dynamic player on the next level. Just because he has escape ability when things don’t add up with his eyes, he can use his legs.
I do think that people could look at Jacksonville as a rebuild, but with them getting a quarterback, that could expedite their success level and their success rate. I think by them kind of flushing everybody out the last few years and getting rid of a lot of contracts that was coming and contracts they took on, getting flexibility in the draft. When you look at that, they’ve been through their rebuild and now they are about to reap the benefits.”
Williams, who will be a free agent in less than a week, was a player many Jags fans wanted to see in teal and black to protect Lawrence’s blindside. However, on Tuesday the team franchise tagged Cam Robinson, decreasing the chances of Williams being a Jaguar.
Still, even if Williams is likely to be on one of the league’s other 31 teams, his statements towards the Jags spoke volumes. If it wasn’t clear before, it is now. Players are indeed intrigued by the Jags as we close in on free agency.
To hear Williams’ statements on Lawrence, simply jump to the 1:04:08 mark below.
https://youtu.be/eXNm982Kozs