When will Trevor play? Jags offensive coordinator mum on whether Lawrence will play vs. Browns
Trevor Lawrence hasn't stepped on a football field under game conditions since Jan. 9 at TIAA Bank Field, when he had his best game as a pro in a 26-11 victory over Indianapolis to end a difficult rookie season on somewhat of a promising note.
That was 215 days ago when he threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns in dashing the Colts' playoff hopes and giving the Jaguars their seventh victory in a row at home over their AFC South rival.
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The Jags are back home for the first time since then Friday against the Cleveland Browns (7 p.m., FOX) but the coaching staff so far this week hasn't tipped its hand on who will start.
If it's not Lawrence, it wouldn't be a tragedy, except for the Jags fans who have already purchased tickets, hoping for their first glimpse of No. 16 this season.
But with an extra preseason game and Lawrence's solid work in training camp so far, there may be an inclination to not rush him and be protective of the team's franchise quarterback of the future.
”We’ll see … that’s stuff we’re still getting into,” offensive coordinator Press Taylor said before Monday’s practice at the Episcopal School’s Knight Campus. “There’s a chance but we’ll continue to have those conversations.”
Lawrence said he's in no rush, as much as his competitive instincts are jumping.
"You want to play but know what the coaches are doing," he said after another physical practice in full pads, lasting two and one-half hours. "It's a long season, a marathon. You don’t want to get ahead of yourself. I’ll be ready to roll."
Lawrence had another good day on Monday, completing 18 of 27 passes in a combination of 11-on-11 and 7-on-7. His best play of the day was a picture-perfect deep pass to Christian Kirk, who took advantage of a blown coverage.
Lawrence threw TD passes to Travis Etienne and Zay Jones in plays inside the 10.
Bethard needs reps
The Jaguars not only have the issue of giving Lawrence snaps but how much time to give presumed No. 2 quarterback C.J. Beathard, who suffered a groin injury in OTAs. Beathard got his first work in 11-on-11 in Sunday’s practice.
In last week’s Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio, Jake Luton played the first half and Kyle Sloter the second. Luton failed to move the team consistently and was 10 of 17 for 94 yards. Sloter produced the only Jags touchdown of the game on a 5-yard pass to Nathan Cottrell (who has since been waived) and was 13 of 25 for 127 yards.
Luton has been working with the third team this week and Sloter didn't get a single rep in team periods on Sunday and Monday.
Taylor said that in a sense, a quarterback can get better reps in training camp than a preseason game. Opposing defenses tend to run vanilla formations and not tip their hand as far as scheme before the regular season begins. Quarterbacks often see more exotic blitzes and sets from their own defense in camp.
“Obviously they’re [quarterbacks] not live … nothing replaces a quarterback being live, being hit, feeling that pass rush,” Taylor said. “But we can put them in a million situations and control it, third-and-11, third-and-12, back-to-back-to back, long-yardage situations, talk through everything. You get a chance to put the situations you want to coach off out here on the field and see how he responds, go back to the room and talk about … that’s a great, great learning opportunity we can’t take for granted.”
Lawrence had good '21 preseason
Lawrence was in agreement and said practicing against a Jaguars defense that has beefed up its pass rush was been good prep work.
"No doubt, I can get great work during the week," he said. "It’s why we practice, especially with our defense. They can do a lot of different things. It's great to go against them."
Lawrence started all three preseason games last season, throwing for 323 yards and two touchdowns, completing 70 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 106.5. In the final preseason game, a 34-14 victory at Dallas, he was 11 of 12 for 139 yards and two scores.
That didn't necessarily translate to the regular season, as Lawrence struggled early when the Jaguars lost their first five games. He had peaks and valleys after that, but his play against the Colts to finish the season has been one of the primary reasons for optimism that with the right coaching staff under Doug Pederson and less turmoil, Lawrence will thrive.
Playing or not playing in one preseason game isn't likely to change that.
Bumps and bruises
In the second day in a row in full pads, the Jaguars had several players come off the field. Potentially, the most serious injury was to wide receiver Christian Kirk, who team P.R. officials said "rolled" his ankle.
Wide receiver Zay Jones and defensive tackle DaVon Hamilton had cramps and offensive tackle Cam Robinson left a team period briefly, but was able to return.
Offensive tackle Will Richardson, who came out of Sunday's practice, was able to return on Monday.
The Jaguars are off on Tuesday and practice on Wednesday.
Contact Garry Smits at gsmits@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars coaches won't say if Trevor Lawrence will play against Browns
