Gardner Minshew reflects on progress he’s made since his rookie season
Last year around this time, Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew was learning the ropes in the 2019 preseason not knowing he’d have to see a bulk of the snaps in the team’s season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs. Once that moment came, however, it changed his life forever and was the start of his journey to eventually become the Jags’ guy in 2020.
Since that moment against the Super Bowl champions, Minshew has let the thought of relinquishing the Jags’ starting quarterback job fuel him and prepare him for what will be an interesting year. After Thursday’s practice, he got to sit down with the media and reflect on how far he’s come, and as expected, he stated he was grateful for the opportunity to live out his dream.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Minshew said of his journey so far. “But you know what, I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. I feel like I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be. I’m super grateful for the people I’ve had around me, that have gotten me to this point, that have helped me prepare for this. And I’m appreciative for the faith that people have put into me, to give me this position. It’s a responsibility that I don’t take lightly and it’s something that I look forward to earning every day, every week.”
It’s been clear of how serious Minshew takes his work since the first day he hit the practice field for the Jags, and that was even before the Jags knew what they had in him. The opportunity to become the Jags’ guy probably became especially clear to Minshew when the Jags traded veteran Nick Foles, and he’s probably never looked back from that moment on.
As for training camp, Minshew has been solid for the most part and does look like he’s put in the necessary work to be successful in 2020. Now, it’s a matter of transferring it to the field as the Jags brought in a new offensive coordinator to the mix in Jay Gruden and several new weapons at receiver. All have seemingly helped him and the first test to gauge him will occur in just over the week as they host their divisional rivals in the Indianapolis Colts.
