Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence Persistent Attitude: 'You Just Have To Keep Playing'

Oct 02, 2024 at 06:09 PM

John Oehser

Jaguars Senior Writer

1002 Week 5 Trevor Presser Recap Article

JACKSONVILLE – What's needed now is toughness.

As Trevor Lawrencesees it, these days are far from fun. Or acceptable. But if the Jaguars are to escape their current struggles, the starting quarterback said the path is clear.

Work. Ignore noise. Win.

"You have to be very thick-skinned, and you have to be persistent," he said.

Lawrence, other players and Head Coach Doug Pederson spoke to the media Wednesday as the Jaguars (0-4) prepared to play the Indianapolis Colts (2-2) in an AFC South game at EverBank Field Sunday.

"Nobody wants to be 0-4," Pederson said. "Nobody wants to be where we are. We feel like we should be further along. I feel right now we're a better football team on paper than what's on the field. We have to find a way to tap into that and get the most out of it."

Eighth-year left tackle Cam Robinson, the Jaguars' most-tenured player, said focusing internally is critical in the team's current situation.

"It's human nature; you want people to talk good about you," Robinson said. "You want good things said about you. When it's not, it can kind of bother you. The best thing I've learned since I've been in the league is you have to let it roll off your back.

"I can't even put into words how important it is."

Three of the Jaguars' losses this season have been decided in the final 18 seconds by five points or less – a 20-17 Week 1 loss at Miami, 18-13 at home to Cleveland in Week 2 and a 24-20 loss to the Houston Texans in Week 4 this past Sunday.

"It's a long season," wide receiver Christian Kirk said. "Thankfully, we have a lot more opportunities ahead of us than behind us. There have been some opportunities that have been missed that have led to us losing football games. We just have to get there, put it all together and just get one. Hopefully, that'll accumulate into getting more."

Lawrence on Wednesday called the start “frustrating.”

"Obviously, we haven't gotten the results we've wanted," he said. "Three of the four losses have been right there and it comes down to a couple of plays. It's a bad feeling, especially when you put the time in. I have no doubt we're going to find our way out of this and we're going to be really good moving forward. The frustrating part is we all feel like it should have happened already. It hasn't happened the first four weeks, which is really frustrating.

"It's a long season and you just have to keep playing."

Pederson and Lawrence spoke of what Pederson called a "very" similar situation in 2022, when the Jaguars started 4-8 before winning their final five regular-season games to win the AFC South title.

"It just takes one – one takeaway, one touchdown drive, one stop," Pederson said. "Then, when you get one win, it can turn into multiple wins, which it did back then."

Pederson also on Wednesday discussed a report this week that he had "lost the locker room."

"I talk to these guys every day," he said. "I see them every day and no, I have not lost the locker room. These guys have done everything I've asked. They continue to play and practice hard and battle. It's a good group. The right leaders are in there. They know what we need to do and they're not making excuses for it, and I'm not going to make excuses. We just have to go do it."

Wide receiver Christian Kirk called the report "100 percent false."

"That's never a question," Kirk said. "I love playing for Coach Pederson. It's the reason I came here, and I know everybody else can say the same. He creates an environment for us to go out there and own it. This is our team. It's a player-oriented team. Doug has done a great job of just putting it in our hands and help facilitating that. We all know he wants the best for us."

Said Lawrence, "I don't know where that's coming from. So, I don't even want to really expand on something that's just not true."

Pederson on Wednesday also discussed a question he received after Sunday's loss to the Texans about his job status, calling it "a good question."

"You're going to go through some setbacks in this league," he said. "You're going to come on some hard times. That's just part of this game. I've been there before. I've done that before. We've always battled back. Even when we were 3-7 in 2022, we found a way to win a game and win multiple games. That's all it takes.

"If you really look at these games with a calm eye and study the tape, are there mistakes? Yeah, there are mistakes. Are they critical at times? Yeah, they're critical at times. But there are a lot of good. That's what we have to lean on and we just have to continue to work."

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Jacksonville, Fla. — Jaguars tight end Luke Farrell (89) during practice at the Miller Electric Center on October 2, 2024.