Ask ten NFL fans to rank the top ten quarterbacks of the current season, and they will all provide ten very different lists. Even though he’s not performing nearly as well as he did in the second part of the 2022 season, Trevor Lawrence should still be included. Ultimately, Lawrence plays a significant role in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 8-6 record, but Mike Lombardi, who doesn’t particularly like Lawrence, won’t hear it.
On Twitter, Lombardi stood up for Brock Purdy, claiming that he doesn’t get nearly as much attention as he deserves. While Lombardi made some valid comments, he also successfully brought up Lawrence by saying that the third-year quarterback is closer to Daniel Jones than Patrick Mahomes.
Lombardi continues, stating that he is not anti-Lawrence, after making a point of stating that neither he nor the Jags are excellent. He tried to seem reasonable, but at the conclusion of the conversation, it felt more like he was yelling at the sky.
Though Lombardi might not recall, Lawrence was the driving force behind the greatest comeback in NFL playoff history. He led the Jags to a 31-30 victory after trailing 27-0 at the half. In addition, the former Clemson Tiger has shown flashes of great quarterback play over his brief career. While it is true that he has occasionally shown inconsistent play, this is to be anticipated from a guy who is just in his third NFL season.
Of course, Lawrence has to improve at hanging onto the football. He fumbled twice against the Baltimore Ravens only last week. In the same manner, this season he hasn’t always made the best choices or thrown the most precise passes. Still, there’s a distinction to be made between stating that “he needs to play better” and stating that “Jacksonville is soft, and he’s not good.”
Daniel Jones, on the other hand, completed 67.5 percent of his passes for 909 yards, two meagre touchdowns, and six interceptions. To put it plainly, the analogy is illogical and ought not to be discussed. However, Mike Lombardi might not be the greatest person to impart football expertise.
During his tenure as general manager of the Cleveland Browns in 2013, Lombardi made a number of dubious decisions. In addition to benching return specialist Josh Cribbs and kicker Phil Dawson, two of the team’s mainstays at the time, he selected the unimpressive Jason Campbell as quarterback one. He did not draft any better.
Barkevious Mingo, an edge rusher, was selected by the Browns at No. 6 in 2013. All Mingo had to show for his three seasons in Cleveland was seven sacks. Not only were the remaining picks made by the Browns that year equally ineffective, but in the process he alienated almost every other executive in the office. It takes a certain sort of badass to pull that off.
Even if Mike Lombardi won’t acknowledge it, Trevor Lawrence is a franchise quarterback for the Jaguars.
Regarding Mike Lombardi’s criticism of Lawrence, it appears that he saw a message on Twitter that made a comparison between the quarterback with long hair and Daniel Jones. Recently, Robert Mays of the Ringer pointed out that pass protection that isn’t very effective and injuries to the offensive line have been holding back Lawrence.
One of the best young analysts in the NFL today, Benjamin Solak, is also fond of Lawrence, but he points out that Lawrence is not the reason the Jaguars have failed offensively this season. Once more, Lawrence may still get better and is far from Patrick Mahomes’ present level.
That being said, it seems like a lazy narrative to ignore Trevor Lawrence since the Jaguars have been struggling with injuries and have just suffered three straight losses. The impact of trading for wide receiver Calvin Ridley in 2023 hasn’t been as great as anticipated. Center In Year 2, Luke Fortner hasn’t advanced all that much. Travis Etienne has had to work hard for every yard he receives since the offensive line as a whole is incapable of running blocks and the general administration neglected to address the left guard position in the offseason.
The fact remains that while Brock Purdy is an excellent quarterback, it is not necessary to disparage Trevor Lawrence in order to elevate Purdy. Although Lawrence is going through a difficult time right now, his performance on the field speaks for itself and he is still a good quarterback.
