Trevor Lawrence Reveals Throwing Session With Calvin Ridley

Trevor Lawrence knows he is going to be throwing a lot of footballs in Calvin Ridley's direction this season.

Naturally, the two have already gotten an early start.

"We have [thrown together] once and I'm super excited," Lawrence told Demetrius Harvey of the Florida Times-Union.

"We're just excited to have him. He's gonna be another piece for this offense and our team and [he's] just a good guy that we're excited to bring into the locker room. It's gonna be a lot of fun."

Ridley, the No. 26 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, caught 217 passes for 3,061 yards and 26 touchdowns in his first three seasons. He played in five games in 2021 before stepping away from the team, catching 31 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns.

“His ability. He’s a great quarterback, young, smart, got an arm. I know that my tools coming to play with him, I can just see us doing really, really big things," Ridley said about him and Lawrence in March. "He has the arm strength to reach me, and I can get open on a lot of different guys. We have a lot of teammates that can help. I just think he’s a great talent, the arm strength, and me, my ability with that, I think it really can work out good.”

“Today's reinstatement by the NFL brings an end to a challenging chapter of my professional career, one that was self-inflicted and began with an isolated lapse in judgement," Ridley said in a statement after he was reinstated in March.

"I have always owned my mistakes and this is no different. I have great respect for the game and am excited for the opportunity to restart my career in Jacksonville. I look forward to showing my new coaches, teammates, and the entire Jaguars organization exactly who I am and what I represent as a player and person.”

With his contract pausing through the suspension, Ridley did not cost the Jaguars anything in 2022. He is set to play on the fifth year of his rookie contract in 2023, worth $11.116 million.

If Ridley is reinstated, the deal will include the 2023 fifth-rounder, but if he isn’t, then it will turn into a sixth-round pick. The 2024 pick will be at least a fourth-rounder if Ridley makes the team. If he hits a play-time milestone, it’ll be a third-rounder. But, if the Jaguars are able to get a long-term deal done, it will be a second-rounder.

Ridley and Lawrence will undoubtedly be throwing together more and more as the 2023 season draws near. For now, their first session and the start of the team's workout program on April 17 will surely suffice.

“That’s the part of football I love. I love the competing. I wish April 17 was tomorrow. That’s what I’m here for," Ridley said.

"I want to play football. I can’t tell y’all how excited I am. I sat out the whole season. The season just ended. Now I’m back in. This process is slow for me to perform. Just taking it slow, one foot at a time, but I can’t wait.”