The Jacksonville Jaguars have to be happy about how things have turned out thus far with quarterback Trevor Lawrence. After a disastrous rookie season under Urban Meyer, things quickly got on track when Doug Pederson took over as head coach for Year 2 of his career.
Now heading into the second season under Pederson’s tutelage, the Jaguars’ No. 1 pick from the 2021 NFL Draft is ascending to that next level. Lawrence was a Pro Bowler last season and is looking to now reach that superstardom level his peers have achieved.
Jacksonville finished the 2022 season as hot as any team in the NFL. After starting 3-7, they rattled off wins in six of their last seven games, winning the AFC South in the process. A historic comeback from down 27-0 in Super Wild Card Weekend against the Los Angeles Chargers was another milestone for Lawrence and the Jaguars.
While they fell just short the following week on the road against the eventually champion Kansas City Chiefs, optimism is high surrounding the team heading into 2023. Alas, that victory over the Chargers wasn’t the first that will be remembered.
In Week 3, the Jaguars defeated the Chargers 38-10 on the road. It was the first road victory for Lawrence in his career, as he had lost nine straight road starts to begin his career. Oddly enough, it is the same exact path that Hall of Famer Peyton Manning carved out to start his career.
Like Lawrence, Manning went 0-9 to begin his career on the road. His first victory also came in Week 3 of his second season. Eerily enough, it was also the Chargers whom Manning defeated for the first road victory of his career.
The Jaguars are certainly hoping that isn’t where the career paths of Lawrence and Manning stop intersecting. They would certainly love to see the Clemson product find the same level of success that Manning did on the field, as he was a 14x Pro Bowler, seven-time All-Pro First Team member, five-time MVP and two-time Super Bowl winner.
If Lawrence can get anywhere close to those achievements, the Jaguars would be ecstatic. He has already accomplished something much sooner than Manning did, as he didn’t win his first playoff game until the sixth season of his career.
