Scouting Report

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Trevor Lawrence is a phenom. He is the type of quarterback prospect that only happens once in a generation. He has been labeled the “future of the NFL” since he was in high school. He is being looked at as the messiah of Jacksonville. He’s been in the spotlight since he was 16 years old and he knows how to deal with pressure. He is basically the Zion Williamson of the NFL.  At Clemson, he was a winner. He only lost two games in three seasons, won a national championship, and people can argue that he is the best quarterback prospect since Andrew Luck and Jon Elway.  I didn’t think his tape was “perfect” but he is definitely a baller and nobody can argue with that. Lawrence will start from day one and should be a franchise quarterback for the next decade (or more) assuming he stays healthy. Lawrence is looked at as a lock for the number one overall pick and will most likely be taken by the Jacksonville Jaguars. There is still a lot of time before the draft starts, but this is hard to disagree with. I don’t think players like Trey Lance and Justin Fields are as far behind Lawrence as everyone is saying they are, but all three players will be special in this league. 

The two best traits that stuck out on Lawrence’s tape was his decisiveness and deep accuracy. It is very clear that he understands defenses, his pre-snap IQ is on another level and he is super smart. This results in a lot of quick passing to his first read because he understands where the holes of the defense are. Lawrence does a great job at scanning the field and has a ton of poise in the pocket. One of the most underrated parts of Lawrence’s game is his arm strength. It seems like he gets more accurate the further he throws the ball down field. He hits his receivers in stride and he has the arm strength and accuracy to throw outside the numbers. It his hard to critique his mechanics because they are damn near close to perfect and he has great drop back. Lawrence can throw the ball on a rope down field, but he can also throw the ball with touch. There was no better quarterback than Lawrence when it comes to playing under pressure. In every Clemson game that I watched, all the defenses tried to surprise Lawrence with exotic blitz packages, but Lawrence was able to respond. Before you knew it, Clemson would be up 21 points by the end of the first quarter. He has a natural feel for the pocket, he knows when to step up and when to scramble. Lawrence is sneaky fast and a long strider. Even though Lawrence is 6’6, the power in his legs shows up on film. When running the football, he’s able to shed defender despite being having a longer stature. Lawrence has the capabilities of being an MVP quarterback.

Lawrence is a high ceiling high floor type of player, but there were some flaws in his game. The first notable flaw in his game were fumbles. Lawrence fumbled five times in just nine games this season. As a runner he reminds me a lot of Daniel Jones. He’s extremely mobile, but he can be careless with the football. This is one reason why his awareness rating was a little lower than expected. There were also times where he’d set his receiver up to take a big hit. I’d like to see him get better at protecting his receivers. Clemson has been up big in almost every game Lawrence has played in. In his two losses, Lawrence’s poise, accuracy, and decision all got away from him. It will be interesting to see how he responds to adversity as an NFL quarterback.

Some character traits that make Lawrence such a great prospect are his leadership, toughness, and intelligence. Lawrence along with Ohio State QB, Justin Fields, were two of the biggest advocates for the return of college football in 2020. As a freshman, Lawrence led Clemson to a national title victory over Alabama and went to the CFB playoffs in all three years as the Tigers quarterback. Despite playing with some of the talented players in the country, Lawrence didn’t have the greatest offensive line. There were some games where Lawrence would take an absolute beating and play through the pain. This is both attributed to his pocket poise and his toughness. As a student, Trevor Lawrence graduate Clemson with a Science degree in just three years. Lawrence has the headspace and the physical features to be a top five quarterback in the NFL.

Lawrence would fit best in an Andy Reid type system or the Bruce Arians type system that pushes the ball down field. Trevor Lawrence will thrive in an offense that uses 11 personnel, RPO’s, and just an offense that allows him to be himself. If he get drafted by the Jaguars, I’d like to see Darrell Bevel (Jaguars Offensive Coordinator) adapt his system to fit Lawrence’s skill set. Trevor Lawrence has the potential to turn the Jaguars franchise around. Offenses that he’d naturally fit in with would include the Colts, Bears, and Falcons.

Since Lawrence is such a rare talent, it was hard to find a comparison for him. When it comes to intelligence, mobility, accuracy, and arm strength; the only player in the past decade who is similar would be Andrew Luck. One thing that Luck struggled with out of college was protecting himself. Similar to Lawrence, Luck took a lot of hits which resulted in his early retirement. Trevor Lawrence will need to be smarter when it comes to sliding and throwing the football away. While the two players have completely different body types, they have a similar style of play. If there is a quarterback who can turn the Jaguars franchise around, it will be Lawrence. He’ll have a young core with James Robinson, DJ Chark, and Laviska Shenault. It will take a few years before the Jaguars can compete in the AFC, but the turnaround will be quicker with #16 under center.