3 Reasons Trevor Lawrence WON'T Succeed in the NFL
Trevor Lawrence is primed for success when he becomes the first overall pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars in Thursday's NFL draft.
However, there are dissenters out there.
Not everyone in the NFL world believes Lawrence is a complete slam dunk at the next level, despite many reasons why he'll be great at the next level.
Some of that is wishful thinking from fans who simply don't want him to succeed or media who want to go against the grain.
But this is big-boy football. Draft after draft is filled with busts. Sometimes the experts miss. Sometimes our eyes fail us. The problem is, it's hard to see enough flaws in the former Clemson QB's game to buy into it.
Odds are, so many NFL and college pundits can't be THAT wrong. Or can they? In a league that chews and spits out even the most talented of players, there is always a chance a can't-miss prospect misses.
Even if you feel it's unlikely, here are three (non-health-related) reasons why Lawrence WON'T succeed in the NFL:
1. Urban Meyer: There isn't a great history of college coaches making successful leaps to the NFL. In fact, the odds might be stacked against the former Ohio State and Florida national championship-winning head coach. But he does have Lawrence to build with. Unfortunately, Meyer isn't coming in with a bonafide system. He's not a huge Xs and Os guy. What happens if his motivational tactics don't work at this level? The NFL is relentless and tiresome. Meyer has walked away from previous jobs because of health issues before. This could turn into an unstable situation for Lawrence.
2. Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers: Lawrence has uncharacteristically received a bad rap at times when it comes to turnovers, but it's the one area that can turn any great prospect into a bust. Ask former No. 1 pick Jameis Winston. Aside from a rough start to 2019 in which he tried too hard and threw seven interceptions in the first half of the season, he's been pretty good protecting the football via the pass. However, he has put the ball on the turf in big games against Ohio State and LSU. He's going to get hit in the NFL, and hard. Ball security could be a problem if he doesn't fix some of his footwork when pressured and limit his ceiling.
3. Other factors: Andrew Luck was a can't-miss prospect in 2012. By 2019, he was out of football. No Super Bowl championship. Not even an appearance. A poor offensive line, the propensity to take big hits when trying to make too many plays and just bad injury luck led Luck to decide his health outlook was more important than his career. Lawrence has already said that while he truly loves football and wants to be the best, it's not his entire life. The NFL looks down upon those kinds of comments, fair or not. Lawrence is going to deal with criticism he's never seen before, and losing isn't something he's used to either. There is a multitude of reasons why a great prospect simply doesn't pan out. Plus, he'll always be measured by winning, and Jacksonville isn't exactly title town.
