Last year’s draft had many fans excited due to the quarterback talent it included. The Jacksonville Jaguars were aware more than any team because they held the No. 1 overall pick and used it on Trevor Lawrence, who was widely considered the top prospect in the draft.
After Lawrence was selected, four other quarterbacks were selected in the first round in Mac Jones, Justin Fields, Trey Lance, and Zach Wilson. There was also another rookie quarterback taken in the AFC South who received a lot of playtime, too, in third-rounder Davis Mills.
Heading into 2022, there are high hopes for each of the aforementioned quarterbacks from the 2021 class, as several of them will be starters again. That said, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler took on the task to rank them heading into this season by garnering the thoughts of multiple NFL coaches and scouts.
Despite a rough rookie year where he had to deal with a dysfunctional environment, Lawrence ranked first among the group as executives expressed confidence in his ability to bounce back. One scout told Fowler that the upcoming season would be Lawrence’s true rookie year thanks to having a normal workspace and that the personnel and schematic pieces are now there for him to take a step.
“This will be like his true rookie year,” said one AFC scout. “Hopefully not too many permanent scars from last year.”
“He didn’t have a chance last year,” the scout told Fowler. “But having [coach] Doug [Pederson] and new weapons will help him a ton. He needs support, both in personnel and schematically, and then the natural ability can take over. He should have that now.”
The Jags fired Urban Meyer last December as he wasn’t cut out for the NFL and didn’t understand the game like he should have, especially when it came to his players. Then over a month later, they hired a former Super Bowl-winning coach in Doug Pederson, who has a much better understanding of the players due to being a former player himself.
As for the roster additions, the Jags were super busy this offseason spending the most money in NFL free agency history. That included signing notable receivers for the offense like Christian Kirk and Zay Jones, as well as former All-Pro guard Brandon Scherff and tight end Evan Engram.
While none of the aforementioned skilled players are elite playmakers, they certainly are upgrades that Pederson can work with. After all, he didn’t have a bunch of elite names on his 2017 Super Bowl-winning roster but was able to mold them into an offensive powerhouse.
Fowler’s survey also had some executives who questioned Lawrence’s ability, with one coach stating that he expected more from the former Clemson star in 2021.
“I didn’t necessarily see a transcendent talent from him,” one NFL coach said. [He] didn’t look as explosive throwing or on the move as I expected.”
Regardless of his doubters in the league, all that matters is that Pederson believes in Lawrence. That’s clearly the case, as Lawrence was a big draw in the Jags’ coaching search.
Another positive is that Pederson is a coach who is a part of the hottest offensive coaching tree in the NFL right now, and that tree is the Andy Reid tree. When looking at the success the tree has had with Patrick Mahomes, Alex Smith, and others, Jags fans should have confidence that their franchise signal-caller is in good hands.
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