There are a lot of people you can point the finger at when it comes to who to blame for the Jacksonville Jaguars' 1-5 start. Head coach Doug Pederson, offensive coordinator Press Taylor, defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, and general manager Trent Baalke would all be acceptable answers.
Trevor Lawrence would not be.
This isn't to say that the former No. 1 overall pick has played perfect - he hasn't. However, the complete and utter dysfunction around him on both sides of the ball consistently sets him up for failure.
Let's start with the defense. This is the third time in four games in which the Jaguars' defense has allowed 34 or more points. Ryan Nielsen was supposed to fix the defensive woes, but it looks like more of the same from 2023 in terms of inefficiency and inability to prevent splash plays. The Jaguars entered the day 31st in EPA per play defensively. By the end of the week, they may be dead last in the NFL.
Offensively, the Jaguars dropped three passes in the end zone against the Bears. Gabe Davis had two hit the ground after hitting him directly in the hands, and Brian Thomas Jr. had a pass slip through his hands late in the fourth quarter. All these drops put Jacksonville in the top five of drops in the NFL. Despite that, Lawrence finished the game with an EPA per play of 0.19. For context, Joe Burrow currently ranks second in the NFL with an EPA per play of 0.183.
Lawrence has been far from perfect this season, but where has the support come from? Who is helping him succeed? And for everyone who wants to say "Well Patrick Mahomes does x, y, and z with bums at receiver." Yes, shocking development - not every quarterback is Patrick Mahomes. Nor does every quarterback have Andy Reid and one of the NFL's best defenses to lean on.
If you want to say that Lawrence hasn't lived up to the lofty expectations placed upon him coming out of college, fine. But even then, this is still a guy who dragged the saddest sack of a franchise to a playoff berth and a playoff win in his second year, was beat to hell at the end of 2023 while still being asked to be Superman and just wasn't given enough help to make it work. Now, that lack of help is still evident, and Lawrence is still expected to play Iron Chef and cook a five-star meal with ingredients that very few people could cook with.
There is a lot wrong with the Jacksonville Jaguars, but their quarterback is at the bottom of that list.
