Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence now is the highest paid player in franchise history, after agreeing to a five-year, $275 million contract extension ($200 million guaranteed), as reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter.
Jaguars and Trevor Lawrence reached agreement on a five-year, $275 million extension, including $200 million guaranteed - $142 million at signing, per source. pic.twitter.com/DfBwA7TSlz
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) June 13, 2024
In his third year last season, Lawrence completed 370 passes (65.6%) for 4,016 yards, had 21 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. That is to say, he underperformed compared to his sophomore season (4,113 yards; 25 TD/8 INT).
All in all, during his first three seasons, Lawrence has a 20-30 record and threw for 58 touchdowns, but has noticeably struggled with giving the ball to the other team, accumulating 60 turnovers.
Heading into his fourth year, the Jaguars front office and specifically head coach Doug Pederson still have full trust in the 24-year-old out of Clemson, as it is a long process to finding success in the NFL.
"I learned this back when I went to Green Bay as a player under Mike Holmgren: It takes three to four years," Pederson said. "It takes that time to develop into the quarterback that you want to become or you want for your team. And it's just not an overnight deal. It's not a plug-and-play deal. Some teams, some guys are going to have success, but there is that just understanding the game and learning the game and studying the game."
To point out, after starting out the season with a 8-3 record, Lawrence lost his last five games that he played in, and this can be blamed on injuries. Notably, he was playing with a high right ankle sprain, concussion, as well as a shoulder injury down the stretch, and as a result, the playoff contending team came up short to end their season.
The Jaguars missed their chance at a second consecutive AFC South title, as the Tennessee Titans beat them 28-20 in the final division rival game of the season, which ultimately ended their postseason contention.
Yet, coach Pederson says his quarterback is prepared heading into the upcoming 2024 season.
"He's becoming the vocal leader in the locker room, on the field, in meetings," Pederson said to ESPN reporters. "He's engaging. When we got him three years ago, he was just learning our system and kind of quiet and just trying to go through the motions a little bit of just trying to adapt to us and get a feel for us. Now he's engaging and giving us ideas. Now he's giving us suggestions and ideas and really becoming another coach, a set of eyes on the field."
Pederson predicts this year will be a breakout season for Lawrence.
"It's the encouraging part as an offensive staff, and just myself now going into that third year [with Lawrence]. This is kind of this jump year that he can have moving forward."
Related: Trevor Lawrence's Wife Speaks Out Against Comments Towards Jaguars QB
