Former Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence is a big part of what drew Doug Pederson to Jacksonville, and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft is one of the main reasons why Pederson took the Jaguars’ head coaching job this offseason.
Pederson, a former longtime NFL quarterback, is excited about Lawrence and can’t wait to work with him heading into his second professional season in 2022.
“Again, he’s one of the young, talented players on this roster, and someone you can really build a future with,” Pederson said recently during an interview on CBS Sports HQ. “There were a lot of moments last year where that came through and he shined that way and really led this football team. I’ve only had a chance to meet him briefly here in the last three or four weeks, but what everybody has told me within the building is he’s a tremendous leader, he’s the first in, the last out every single day, on and off the football field, and that’s what you want from the face of your franchise, from your quarterback.
“We know that we’ve got work to do, he knows he’s got work to do, and looking forward to that. We’re not going to shy away from it, and we’re going to build from there.”
As a rookie last season, Lawrence completed 59.6 percent of his passes for 3,641 yards and 12 touchdowns with 17 interceptions for a passer rating of 71.9 that ranked 30th among 31 qualified quarterbacks.
However, Lawrence flashed his potential at times over the course of his first NFL campaign, especially in the Jaguars’ final regular season game against the Indianapolis Colts. He finished the year on a high note and reminded people why he was the No. 1 overall pick, completing 23-of-32 passes for 223 yards and throwing for two touchdowns against one of the NFL’s top defenses while leading the Jags to a 26-11 victory.
While Pederson hopes Lawrence will learn and grow from the experience he gained as a rookie, Pederson is pretty much just throwing Lawrence’s rookie season in the garbage and starting over with him entering next season — looking at 2022 like it’s his rookie year all over again.
“We’re sort of erasing last year,” Pederson said. “I want him to learn from it. He played in every game, right. But we’re taking him from the ground floor. We’re kind of treating this like his rookie season. Even though he’s got games under his belt, we’re starting over. We can lean on some of the successes that he had, but at the same time we’re going to formulate our own plan with Trevor and with his input and really attacking this offseason that way and building him from the floor and the ground up.
“But everything so far, the conversations I’ve had with him, he’s ready and eager to get in there, to really start breaking it down so we can start building it back up.”
–Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Clemson Variety & Frame is doing their part to help bring you some classic new barware and help one of the local businesses that helps make Clemson special.
Order your Nick’s barware and do your part to help. #SaveNicks
