With no excuses, time for Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence to let it rip

Time to play amateur psychologist.

Our patient is Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence. The time and location of the appointment was Wednesday, Sept. 3, in the team’s press conference room.

Over 12 minutes of back-and-forth discussion, we could capture a snapshot of Lawrence’s mindset entering his fifth season opener.

Scribbles in our notepad: Player in great head-space (relaxed). … Believes in new coach’s plan/vision (play-caller Liam Coen). … Comfortable with rebuilt offensive line (sounded convincing). … Excited to work with teammates (led by receivers Brian Thomas Jr., Travis Hunter). … Operating in the present (smart).

Our armchair conclusion: Get ready to see the Trevor Lawrence who went 15-5 (including playoffs) from Dec. 2022-Nov. 2023. The record may not be that gaudy but he will consistently be more of a help than a hindrance.

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The Jaguars’ effort to improve from 4-13 and get back into the playoff mix will start with Lawrence. If he clicks with Coen, look out.

“I have a ton of confidence in Trevor Lawrence,” executive vice president of football operations Tony Boselli told The Times-Union. “What I’ve watched Trevor do is make the investment on the physical and mental sides that has shown me an internal drive that is stronger than whatever the outside noise and pressure is of what he should or could be. He has a vision of what he wants to be and that’s a great quarterback.”

Coen did great work last year as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator with quarterback Baker Mayfield. The Buccaneers ranked first on third down and fourth in yards, rushing yards, red zone and points. Mayfield threw 41 touchdowns.

“Trevor can say, ‘OK, I have this new coach, who every quarterback he’s worked with has played big-time ball so now’s my time to rip it,’” ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky said in a phone interview.

‘Just … go … play’

The first four chapters of Lawrence’s career varied in drama levels and success.

Chapter 1 (2021): Urban Meyer was his coach. Enough said.

Chapter 2 (2022): Eight touchdowns and two interceptions during a five-game sprint to the AFC South title.

Chapter 3 (2023): An 8-3 start spoiled by a 1-5 finish and out of the playoffs.

Chapter 4 (2024): Ah, let’s just move on from Doug Pederson and his beloved offensive coordinator, Press Taylor.

“It’s not ideal, but it can be a positive,” Orlovsky said. “With Urban Meyer, it was a total mess; you pretend like it didn’t happen. Doug (Pederson) came in and Trevor’s starting to put it together and then maybe there was a mountaintop and then regression.”

The first page of Chapter 5 were more sweeping changes.

Coen is Lawrence’s third coach and third play-caller and Spencer Whipple his third quarterback coach. The Times-Union examined No. 1 overall draft pick quarterbacks since 2001 for a comparable rate of non-continuity.

Mayfield had six coaches and play-callers apiece and three quarterback coaches in his first five years bridging stays with Cleveland, Carolina and the Los Angeles Rams. Alex Smith had two coaches, five play-callers and four quarterback coaches in his first five seasons for San Francisco.

At the opposite end of the changes chart were Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer (same coach, play-caller and quarterback coach) and the New York Giants’ Eli Manning (same coach and two play-callers and quarterback coach apiece). Detroit’s Matthew Stafford, Indianapolis’ Andrew Luck and Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow had the same coach in their first five years; Bengals coach Zac Taylor has been Burrow’s only play-caller.

Once in place, Coen strived to create a bond with Lawrence. Was Lawrence mentally broken?

“To say, ‘broken,’ I don’t know, but he definitely needed some confidence. We’ve seen it get better and better,” Coen told the Times-Union. “There was some frustration in himself that he hasn’t quite performed at the level he would like to and that was one of our first conversations, him taking that on his shoulders a little bit.

“It’s been a lot of building up of confidence in ways and showing him ways and showing him great examples of when he does it the way we’re coaching it to be done. We’ve also had some tough coaching moments when we’ve gone at it a few times and we’ve only grown from those moments.”

Coen is told it would seem coach vs. quarterback jousting is better than the quarterback not speaking up.

“That’s right,” Coen said. “You definitely don’t want somebody who is a, ‘Yes, sir,’ to everything. Coach-to-player or player-to-coach, you want to challenge each other. Trevor so innately wants to do right and how we’re coaching it, but you also have to go let him play.”

It’s a facet of Lawrence’s game Orlovsky wants to see more often.

“When things get him in trouble, he can become a little programmed and robotic,” Orlovsky said. “When he’s at his best, he allows his athleticism to be the primary part of his game. He’s so talented. Just … go … play.”

Communicating with Coen

Lawrence is out of excuses. The coaching search ended with a play-caller who got the best out of Mayfield and greatly improved the Buccaneers’ overall production. In April 2024, then-general manager Trent Baalke made the astute trade-up for Thomas and this past April, new general manager James Gladstone took a big swing to move up for Hunter.

Lawrence still plays the toughest position in professional sports, but at least he has a better infrastructure in place.

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) gets coached by Jaguars Head Coach Liam Coen during the Jaguars 14th NFL training camp session at Miller Electric Center Tuesday August 12, 2025 in Jacksonville, Fla. The Jaguars travel to New Orleans to play the Saints this Sunday in their second preseason game. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union]

“Absolutely jacked at the progression we saw from the offseason program through three preseason games and on the horizon of the regular season,” Gladstone said. “Throughout the course of training camp, he began to test everything and push the limits.”

That speaks to what Orlovsky said. A quarterback can’t go broke taking the short profit (conservative throws) as the saying goes … but he will also be spinning his wheels. Offenses can’t make a living by refusing to throw beyond 10 yards downfield. There needs to be a vertical component. The Jaguars have Thomas and Hunter — there is no reason why Lawrence can’t challenge defenses if the protection holds up.

Lawrence said last week the goal is to be in “lockstep,” with Coen. Argue and debate during the week while the plan is being finalized so they have such a synergy during the games. There should be no guessing. Think Stafford-Sean McVay with the Rams, Patrick Mahomes-Andy Reid in Kansas City and among coordinators, Allen-Joe Brady in Buffalo and Lamar Jackson-Todd Monken in Baltimore.

“It’s my job to get the ball to the right guy, but knowing what he’s thinking and why he’s calling certain things is certainly valuable,” Lawrence said. “We’re on a great trajectory on that.”

If Lawrence learns from the past, the past will end up being a benefit and his re-ascension will resume.

“He’s been very eager to improve himself,” Whipple said. “One of my favorite things is sitting with him and talking X’s and O’s — he’s come to work each day with a hungry mindset.”

Lawrence is 22-38 as a starter — righting that mark should be chief on the hunger chart. No one should second-guess the Jaguars drafting him first overall in 2021 or dispute the near-constant road blocks put in his way throughout his career. But if he is going to be upper echelon and even challenge Houston’s C.J. Stroud for the AFC South’s top passer, he should have an all gas/no breaks approach.

Let it rip, Trevor.

O’Halloran can be reached at rohalloran@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: No more excuses for Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence in 2025

With no excuses, time for Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence to let it rip | O’Halloran

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