Week 3 QB Index: Does Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence Rise After Colts Game?
After a career game against the Indianapolis Colts, the obvious expectation is to see Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence see his name more and more on the rise.
Well, that isn't quite the case in this week's quarterback index check, even after Lawrence was nearly perfect in a 24-0 win against the Colts in Week 2.
Lawrence completed 25-of-30 passes for 235 yards (7.8 yards per attempt) and two touchdowns with zero interceptions last week, finishing with a quarterback rating of 121.5.
But where does that place Lawrence in this week's QB Index from NFL.com? Lawrence enters Week 3 ranked 20th, actually one spot than the week before -- even though he rose four spots after a Week 1 loss to the Washington Commanders.
"Under the watchful eye of quarterback muse Doug Pederson, Lawrence took a step forward in Sunday's romp over the Colts. Last year's first overall pick recorded career bests in completion percentage (83.3), QB rating (121.5) and adjusted yards gained per attempt (9.17)," NFL.com's Marc Sessler wrote.
"The accuracy is appreciated after too many examples of Lawrence missing the mark as a rookie. The early chemistry with Christian Kirk -- who put up a 6/78/2 line and caught all his targets -- is helped by Pederson drawing up saucy plays in the dirt. The only reason for this week's slight drop: Jimmy G's return to the rankings."
Seeing Lawrence fall at all this week after rising four weeks the week previously is an odd movement to track. If anything, Lawrence should have fell last week when he missed more throws and made more poor decisions. In Week 2, he was sublime outside of maybe two throws all game -- and this is while factoring in two drops, including one for a touchdown.
"I think he's right on schedule just continuing to grow week to week," Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor said on Thursday. I think that's the fun part of this league is the plan of attack each week may have to change and that's one of the things we talk about, about being fluid as an offense and doing whatever it takes to put us in a situation to win that week.
"The Colts' defense was very different than the Commanders' defense that's different from the Chargers' defense. So, it's kind of on all of us as a group to get together, learn as much as we can about that opponent, study what we think, and then put together a plan of attack and communicate that to the players, them buy in, get on the same page to be able to execute it for the week and then feel good going into Sunday. I think you saw that out of Trevor. He played with a lot of confidence. I feel like he was prepared and confident in the plan of attack and what we were trying to get done, trusted the guys around him, and had a good showing for it."
Lawrence has a chance to make a big statement this week agaisnt the Los Angeles Chargers on the road. A win in Los Angeles would not only be the first road win of Lawrence's career, but it would be a potentially season-defining moment vs. one of the best teams the Jaguars will face all season.
