In an act typically reserved for figures with significant achievements, airports, streets, and buildings are often named to honour individuals. The Jacksonville Jaguars, however, attempted a premature celebration of greatness by renaming their stadium in honour of Trevor Lawrence for the weekend, a gimmick poised for mockery. This latest Lawrence homage — their first odd attempt at rebranding — under a struggling Jaguars’ regime couldn’t bring any joy to TrEverBank Stadium on Sunday. The Jaguars suffered a narrow 18-13 defeat to the Cleveland Browns, leaving them worse-for-wear at 0-2.
Lawrence was blunt in his post-match briefing, acknowledging their current ineptitude. He held himself, as the offensive leader, responsible, also challenging the wideouts, the line, the running backs, and even the coaches to improve their game.
Despite his self-criticism and the responsibility he took for his team’s performance, the issues seem to be deeply rooted, predominantly within the coaching staff. The head coach, Doug Pederson, and the offensive coordinator, Press Taylor, offered a lacklustre playbook, resulting in Lawrence finishing the first half with a meagre 16 passing yards, a dismal figure considering the arsenal at Lawrence’s disposal. While the Browns’ staunch defence deserves commendation, this low passing yard figure seems inconceivable for a team led by Lawrence.
The errors were spread throughout the entire game. Pederson and Press were sluggish in delivering plays to Lawrence. Furthermore, Pederson, who being a seasoned coach should know better, had to waste two time outs to stave off the delay of game penalty. The Jaguars also squandered a vital 10 seconds due to an illegal shift penalty, leaving them with a first and 15 from their own 39 with only 48 seconds left to play.
Lawrence’s performance this year has not been quite up to par, especially considering he was once heralded as a once-in-a-lifetime talent. Although he’s had some notable moments in the season’s first two weeks, such as a 66-yard touchdown pass to Brian Thomas against the Browns and an impressive 33-yard dash, his high number of misfires is concerning. Despite being under pressure repeatedly, he managed to prevent a turnover, concluding the day with 220 yards from just 14 successful passes. However, his team suffered a loss for the seventh time in their last eight matches.
His sporadic flashes of remarkable skill are even more disappointing considering the expectation of him to perform consistently. Lawrence was seen as a promising talent and a potential key player in the league, however, his career, so far, reflects more mediocre than consistent brilliance. This is evident in his QBR standings, which were ranked 28th, 17th, and 17th in his first three NFL seasons.
Lawrence was anticipated to follow in the footsteps of Andrew Luck or Peyton Manning, but thus far, his performance has been just average. That said, his 2022 postseason performance was a positive aspect for Jacksonville. Despite this, the team didn’t provide him with sufficient protection, focusing more on strengthening the defense, a strategy that backfired with center Mitch Morse’s lackluster performance.
Although Lawrence possesses inherent qualities such as quick reflexes and leadership skills, these alone are insufficient to transform Jacksonville into a regular competitor, as shown by players like Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, and Patrick Mahomes. They’re not adequate for the team to consider renaming their home stadium. For Lawrence, the commitment from Jacksonville was made clear when they offered him a five-year extension for $275m in June. In spite of this, his commendable performance fell short of the expectations put upon him.
Quarterback Kyler Murray of Arizona Cardinals put on a spectacular show during their 41-10 thrashing of the Los Angeles Rams, as a testament to his foregoing No 1 overall selection. Murray demonstrated exceptional talent, scoring three touchdowns, making 266 passing yards, and accumulating 59 ground yards. He achieved significant connections with rookie wideout Marvin Harrison Jr, scoring two long touchdowns, to the delight of Harrison’s fantasy league followers.
However, the most thrilling moment of the match came when Murray threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Higgins whilst under tremendous pressure on a third and five. This play, which concluded a game with a remarkable perfect passer rating for Murray, stole the spotlight from his other stunning performances during the day.
In other league news, the New Orleans Saints made six straight touchdowns on their initial six drives in their 44-19 victory over Dallas. Derek Carr and Alvin Kamara led a masterclass demonstration of Klint Kubiak’s strategically sound offense. Carr executed stunning long passes, which included a 70-yard touchdown to Rashid Shaheed. Meanwhile, Kamara reigned supreme with his outside run and screen plays, scoring four times. The Saints’ offensive line effectively provided Carr with ample time.
Despite the Saints’ previous 40 plus-point output against the Carolina Panthers being met with doubts, this commanding performance against Micah Parsons and the Cowboys’ defense paves their way towards being a promising early-season contender. As for the Cowboys, their persisting problems in the red zone were amplified with Dak Prescott’s two interceptions, indicating that they were merely outmaneuvered and overwhelmed.
In other news, Will Levis seems to be inadvertently campaigning for the formation of a ‘Boneheaded Play of the Week’ segment, following his continued blunders. Despite conceding the match to Chicago through an interception in Week 1, Levis unfortunately hasn’t seemingly learnt from his mistakes. These sentiments were echoed by Brian Callahan, the Titans’ head coach.
– The Cincinnati Bengals experienced a crushing defeat when they could have been victorious against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Bengals squandered their lead due to avoidable penalties and blunders which marred their gameplay. A particularly consequential penalty was a 29-yard pass interference on Daijahn Anthony, the Bengals safety, in the final moments of the game. This enabled Harrison Butker to score a 51-yard game-winning field goal, finishing the game 26-25. Throughout the second half and after the game, Bengal’s quarterback Joe Burrow was visibly upset, as he had outperformed Mahomes. He even needed to hold back Ja’Marr Chase from confronting an official over a lack of proper call, resulting in a 15-yard unfair play penalty. The Bengals’ defeat was all the more bitter due to a missed extra-point in a tightly contested game. This latest Cincinnati-Kansas City face-off will certainly stand out in the Bengals’ memory as one they would have loved to redo.
– Sam Darnold may have had some satisfaction in beating the San Francisco 49ers, his previous team, in a 23-17 surprise victory. During an excellent and productive performance, Darnold completed 17 of 26 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns, including a notable 97-yard throw to Justin Jefferson. The game was primarily shaped by Brian Flores’ defense strategy, which successfully limited the attacking prowess of the current NFC champions.
– The unenviable task of containing Detroit Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson fell on Justin Skule’s shoulders. While Skule’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers came out victorious in a 20-16 game, there was no denying that Hutchinson had dominated his individual encounters, ending the match with an impressive tally of 4.5 sacks. Furthermore, it was Hutchinson’s fourth successive game with at least one sack, equalling the longest streak by any Lions player since sacks became an official statistic in 1982, according to ESPN Stats & Info. However, Baker Mayfield’s determined effort ensured that Tampa remains undefeated at 2-0.
At times, a quarterback may choose to hold on to the ball during the third down to avoid negative outcomes such as the loss of field position or an interception when under stress. Packer’s quarterback, Malik Willis, however, presented a unique rationale, as shared by his head coach Matt LaFleur. When queried about why he didn’t execute a throw on the third down, Willis revealed that it was because the center, Josh Myers had vomited on the ball. If you’re partial to a good sick joke, make sure to check out Packer’s social media.
An update on siblings Jim and John Harbaugh’s managerial careers, Jim’s Chargers have seized two successive victories, whereas, John’s Ravens are off to a rough start, losing their first two matches.
In the aftermath of his much-hyped, but ultimately recklessly cliched first broadcasting appearance, Tom Brady’s returned to the commentator’s booth during the Saints’ thrashing of the Cowboys. His maiden broadcasting experience was marred by evidence of anxiety and a flawed rhythm. However, in a twist typical of Brady’s fiercely competitive nature, he bounced back within a week. Despite still spouting some cliches and occasionally faltering, Brady’s commentary began to exhibit a genuine understanding of the game. Fox allowed him to play to his strengths, indulging his passion for the technicalities of football. There were instances where he appeared to be relaxed, and even enjoying himself. While he may not supplant Greg Olsen as Fox’s premier commentator – considering his rapport with fellow-commentator Kevin Burkhardt remains underdeveloped – Brady’s significant improvement from the previous week is commendable.