What Doug Pederson Wants to See From Trevor Lawrence in OTAs

What does the Jaguars head caoch want to see out of his franchise passer in his first week of OTAs?

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence is ready to put the 2021 season behind him and take the next step in his development. 

For him to do that, there are some areas new head coach Doug Pederson wants to see him ascend in during organized team activities. Areas Pederson knows Lawrence can reach with physical and mental reps, just as he has all offseason to this point.

“For him, just again, staying comfortable and getting more comfortable with the offense," Pederson said on Monday as the Jaguars kicked off the next phase of their offseason. 

"I really like his dialogue with [Quarterbacks Coach] Coach [Mike] McCoy, and [Offensive Coordinator] Press [Taylor] and myself, and things that he likes and doesn’t like. [We] just want to see that growth in him here as we sort of wind down the offseason and gear up for training camp. But he’s been focused, he’s been here, he’s been attentive, he’s done a good job on the football field, he’s a leader, and those are the things we want to continue now as we head into training camp.”

Growth is what will be paramount for Lawrence in his second season. The No. 1 overall pick a year ago, the former Clemson star flashed rare talent throughout his rookie year, but he also made his fair share of mistakes as he was dropped into the worst situation of any rookie quarterback last season due to the Urban Meyer debacle. 

Starting all 17 games in Jacksonville's 3-14 campaign last year, Lawrence completed 59.6% of his passes for 3,641 yards (6.0 yards per attempt) for 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions, which included a lengthy period where Lawrence didn't throw a touchdown pass. 

But the Meyer era is over, and the Jaguars are moving forward with Pederson leading Lawrence's development. Pederson is set to be the most important part of the Jaguars' mission to rectify Lawrence's rookie year and show why he was considered a generational quarterback prospect.

"Quarterback’s an interesting position. It’s not a big rah-rah, chew somebody out. I mean you have some coaches that are like that but for me, that’s just not what I need. I can have a conversation and Coach Pederson’s great about that," Lawrence said on Monday. 

"At every play, he gives you a piece of feedback that another coach might not give you just because he knows what it’s like and it’s something little that he might see that someone else doesn’t see. Having the head coach be able to step in, even today a couple times, three or four times, after a play, he’ll come over and give me a little tip or whatever. Just having a head coach that can do that and really, really knows what he’s talking about is cool.”

Pederson isn't the only key part of Lawrence's development. There are also the weapons the Jaguars added this offseason, such as receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones and tight end Evan Engram. 

Over the next few weeks, it is those weapons that Pederson wants to see form a connection with Lawrence. If they do, then the sky could be the limit for Lawrence's trajectory.

"Just being on the page with Trevor [Lawrence] and Trevor being on the same page with them," Pederson said. 

"We’re limited obviously with the amount of hours we can spend on the football field in the offseason, but these guys have done a really good job of coming here and working. They’re studying too and they’re preparing and they’re learning a new system just like Trevor is, but they’re doing really well. It’s just a matter of just continuing to work together.”