Opinion: First impression of Jacksonville Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence: Wow.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Trevor Lawrence is the truth.

That much was evident with two throws by the rookie quarterback during the latter stages of the Jacksonville Jaguars training camp practice on Thursday that were like, well, Aaron Rodgers-esque.

The first dime came on a free play. After an edge rusher jumped offsides, Lawrence didn’t blink. And Marvin Jones, the crafty veteran receiver, didn’t stop running on a go route up the sideline. Lawrence hit him with a strike in a tight window in the end zone, good for a 39-yard TD.

A few minutes later, the Jags offense changed directions for 7-on-7 drills. On the first snap after a water break, Lawrence threw a spiral on a rope to connect with Laviska Shenalt Jr. on a deep, skinny post for another huge chunk of about 40 yards. The rub here was that the receiver was seemingly double-covered, except that Lawrence split the defenders with a bull’s-eye throw, igniting a huge roar from the crowd of 2,000 at the fields adjacent to TIAA Bank Field.

In a word: Wow. Lawrence was smooth, fluid and efficient as he worked with the first-team unit for the first time. But he added an exclamation point with the two deep strikes that underscored exactly what the Jaguars were getting when they drafted the Clemson product No. 1 overall in April.

“That’s why he’s here,” Darrell Bevell, the Jaguars offensive coordinator, told USA TODAY Sports. “To be able to make plays like that.”

As Jones put it, “Those type of throws, not a lot of people can do that in the NFL. He probably doesn’t even know that. But that’s how he plays. He plays with supreme confidence.”

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Jones, a 10th-year pro who came over as an offseason free agent from Detroit (where he had the best two seasons of his career in Bevell’s system), rattled off a few intangibles, including poise and trust, in assessing his early impressions of Lawrence. The receiver also senses that the evolving chemistry in camp is a carryover from all the offseason dialogue about route adjustments.

“Those are the type of conversations that you have, especially with a rookie phenom like him,” Jones told USA TODAY Sports. “My job is to bridge the gap between the rookie and the vet.”

It’s Bevell’s job to help new Jaguars coach Urban Meyer groom arguably the most talented quarterback prospect to enter the NFL since Peyton Manning. Typical of how quarterbacks are broken in, the Jaguars have unloaded virtually the entire playbook since the spring workouts. Bevell is impressed with what Lawrence retained over the long break between the minicamp and the start of training camp.

“We’re trying to throw a lot at him,” Bevell said. “Trying to put him in those situations before he gets them in a game.”

Sure, there’s a steep NFL learning curve, even for a prospect like Lawrence, 21, who led Clemson to an undefeated national title as a freshman and quarterbacked his teams to a 34-2 record in college.

Yet there’s still something a bit puzzling about how Meyer & Co. have opened camp. On Friday, Lawrence is pegged to line up with the second team while Gardner Minshew — of “Minshew Magic” lore — takes the first-team reps, as was the case when practices began on Wednesday. The Jaguars are rotating the quarterbacks until … further notice.

For who? For what?

Bevell said Minshew deserves a chance to compete for the starting job, given his contributions in recent years. But really, there’s no need to get cute with it. The Jaguars were the worst team in the league last season, which is why they were able to land Lawrence with the top pick in the draft — and to become the face of the franchise.

That’s just the reality.

And that, too, was evident with a quick sequence on the practice field on Thursday. After Lawrence’s big throw to start the 7-on-7 drills, Minshew threw a flare pass to rookie running back Travis Etienne that was low, wide and into the turf. Incomplete. Lawrence came back for the next snap and another flare pass to Etienne on the opposite side of the formation. The running back caught the pass in stride and turned upfield for what might have been a gain to move the chains.

They can call it a competition, but…

“Obviously, we drafted him for a reason,” Bevell said. “We love all the skill-sets, love the preparation and training. We’ll go play and see what he can do.”

In other words, see the truth that fuels the hope.

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars rookie QB, already wows at training camp