Game managers at quarterback can win a lot of games for teams. Sometimes, it might even be better to have a vanilla system passer who just routinely makes the first or second read on a progression and tries his best to avoid negative plays. We've seen it all throughout the years. Whether it's Sam Bradford, Kirk Cousins, or Jimmy Garoppolo, teams have found great success with an efficient, albeit uninspired pocket passer.
Trevor Lawrence isn't that. He's never been that, and he probably never will. But that's how the Jacksonville Jaguars have been able to win games like their playoff comeback against the Los Angeles Chargers in 2023 or their Monday Night Football upset over the Kansas City Chiefs this season.
In Week 12, the Jaguars probably would have been better off with a game manager. Lawrence still ultimately got the job done, leading Jacksonville to a 27-24 overtime victory over the Arizona Cardinals to move to 7-4 on the year, but there's a chance this game could have been a blowout win if there was a system quarterback under center instead.
Jacksonville Jaguars, NFL, Trevor Lawrence, Arizona Cardinals
Nov 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) lies on the ground after being tackled during the third quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
Trevor Lawrence had four turnovers against the Arizona Cardinals. They caused at least a 17-point swing for the Jacksonville Jaguars in a game they won by three. He was strip-sacked, and defensive end Walter Nolen II caught the fumble and returned it for a touchdown. He threw an interception in the end zone to kill a would-be scoring drive. He had another pick that the Cardinals capitalized on with a score on the resulting possession.
Still, he bounced back in a big way. He had two gorgeous scoring passes in this game, one to Parker Washington on a curl and the other with anticipation to Jakobi Meyers on an out route to give him his first touchdown as a Jaguar. Aside from the turnovers, he finished with 285 total yards on five carries and 18-of-30 passing for three TDs. Obviously, the team and its fans would love for T-Law to cut down on the giveaways, but his ability to rebound after backbreaking moments has been commendable. The media asked Head Coach Liam Coen how he approached his quarterback following his string of turnovers in this game:
Trevor Lawrence on #Jaguars final 3 drives:
6-of-9 for 90 yards and a TD
— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) November 24, 2025
"I just hit him a few times after and was just like, ‘Dude, just keep chucking it, man. What are we going to do?’ He was bummed, he was pissed about it, but he kept saying confidently, ‘I feel good. I'm throwing it good. I'm seeing it good.’ Budda [Baker] made an unbelievable play on the third-down where he picked us off. We ran an everybody-sitting-at-the-sticks type of play, and he was playing in between Austin Trammell and the seam-stop — the sit-down, I think it was Parker or Jakobi."
"I thought Budda made a great play on that one, and the one in the red zone obviously gets tipped. We marched right down the field to start the second half. We go bang, bang, bang, bang, bang, throwing the ball and then we get a tipped pick on the six-yard line on a play that's a touchdown. Those are just the ebbs and flows of an NFL game on the road, and we pulled out a win.”
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