The Jacksonville Jaguars need Trevor Lawrence to stay healthy in 2022. For that reason, he turned heads at mandatory minicamp because he was wearing a sleeve. Right away, head coach Liam Coen said that it was a nothingburger, pointing out that the quarterback was feeling soreness but was nothing to worry about. No. 16 got a chance to meet with the local media and confirmed that his choice of gear is a non-issue.
Lawrence told the press corps after Day 3 of minicamp that the sleeve relieves some of the soreness he's feeling, noting that he's getting acclimated to throwing again.
"You gotta think about I hadn't thrown since before OTA, since December. Yeah, December," Lawrence said when asked about the sleeve. "So it was about four months of not throwing, and that's like, I've never, I don't know the last time I couldn't tell you last time I didn't throw it for four months, I guess four years ago, when I got surgery. So I think just going from that to, I threw, I started throwing a couple weeks before we started the offseason program, but then we jumped into practice and heavy volume."
Lawrence continued, "And I think just over time, obviously, you gotta adjust, and gotta get in shape for that. So just a little bit of soreness, the compression helps just relieve some of that, but that's all it is. So nothing I'm concerned about."
The sleeve became a topic of discussion when someone noticed that Lawrence was wearing it. However, it was quickly revealed that he's had it on since Organized Team Activities, and it wasn't an issue.
Lawrence suffered an AC sprain that forced him to miss time last time. He eventually got surgery done and was shut down for the year. Although the former Clemson Tiger was a bit rusty early in OTAs, he was much better in minicamp. That said, he's still recovering and could potentially deal with a setback. Not surprisingly, the team's brass isn't rushing his recovery.
The Jaguars need Trevor Lawrence to stay healthy in lead the way in 2025
Trevor Lawrence has shown that he can play at a high level. However, he's struggled to stay healthy the past two seasons. This has brought up questions about his viability as a starting quarterback in the NFL. Having signed a monster extension in 2024, he's entering a pivotal year in which he must prove he's the long-term answer behind center for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
So far, Lawrence's recovery is coming along nicely. But aside from avoiding the injury bug next season, he also needs to play like he did in 2022, when the Jags won the AFC South and made the playoffs. That may seem like unrealistic expectations in Year 1 of the Liam Coen era. However, the new regime is building around him and doing as much as it can to put him in a position to succeed.
With all the help he's getting, Lawrence must prove he's Coen's guy moving forward. If he fails to deliver, questions about his future with the Jaguars will arise. For the time being, though, it looks like he's on track to bounce back in 2025.
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