Jaguars name No. 1 draft pick Trevor Lawrence starting QB for Week 1
Aug 25, 2021, 9:22 AM
Trevor Lawrence, the first overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, has officially been named the starting quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1.
Jacksonville head coach Urban Meyer on Wednesday made the announcement regarding his team’s opener against the Houston Texans.
“We wanted him to earn it, as we do with every position,” Meyer told reporters. “We felt he has after the last nice performance. It was good, obviously, not great — we didn’t run the ball very well.
“I kind of, in my mind, had that after the second preseason game, we had to (make an announcement) to get someone ready to play in three weeks.”
The Jaguars begin the regular season on the road before hosting two games in a row: against the Denver Broncos in Week 2 and then the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3.
Barring any injuries, Arizona will face veteran quarterbacks Ryan Tannehill of the Tennessee Titans and Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings in the first two weeks before getting Lawrence and the Jaguars in Jacksonville on Sept. 26.
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It’s projected to be a brief break against an inexperienced signal-caller before facing new Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford in Los Angeles, the San Francisco 49ers’ Jimmy Garoppolo at home and the Cleveland Browns’ Baker Mayfield on the road.
In Jacksonville, Lawrence was selected out of Clemson expected to begin his career as the starter. But Meyer had kept the competition open with backup Gardner Minshew, who in his second NFL season completed 66% of his passes and had 16 touchdowns and five interceptions over nine games played in 2020.
“Obviously, my respect for Gardner is well-documented as just a warrior,” Meyer said.
In the preseason, Lawrence has performed relatively well. He went 6-of-9 for 71 yards in his first outing while taking two sacks, then got more run this past week. He completed 14 of 23 passes for 113 yards and took a single sack.
Lawrence hasn’t thrown a touchdown or interception thus far in the preseason. He is expected to play in the third preseason game before making his debut in Week 1.
