Hitting reset after Urban Meyer debacle, QB Trevor Lawrence is finally in better hands | Opinion

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – Perhaps Trevor Lawrence will ultimately live up to the hype that he came out of college with last year as a “generational talent” who ignites the Jacksonville Jaguars' rise on the NFL relevance map. Of course, that’s the plan.

Yet this week, with Lawrence back in his home state for joint practices against the Atlanta Falcons, the quarterback drafted No. 1 overall in 2021 looks and sounds very much like the one working the plan to first make significant strides on the NFL learning curve after absorbing so many knocks as a rookie.

No shame there. Lawrence’s progress last year was stunted while mired in the mess of the Urban Meyer debacle – the much-hyped coach was dumped with a 2-11 record en route to Jacksonville’s 3-14 finish – and, like the franchise as a whole, he’s starting over with new coach Doug Pederson.

It’s no wonder that Lawrence talked Wednesday about the major summer objective of mastering a new offense.

“Going from one system to another and not having that carry over from Year 1 to Year 2, I really wanted to master that,” Lawrence said. “Obviously, there’s more to do.”

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The tougher tests loom, beginning with a Week 1 opener at Washington. But Lawrence, who grew up in Cartersville, Georgia – about an hour’s drive from the Falcons complex – sounded so upbeat as he proclaimed his comfort level in the offense and described detail work. He’s trying to develop chemistry with a supporting cast that includes a slew of newcomers that includes receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones, tight end Evan Engram and left guard Brandon Scherff.

It helps that Lawrence’s old Clemson teammate, Travis Etienne, Jr., has been explosive in coming back from a Lisfranc injury that wiped out his rookie and is poised to team with James Robinson in the backfield. But there’s still a key question about who will line up at right tackle. And the chemistry and communication are works in progress.

“You can draw it all up on paper, but when a guy actually has the rep, including myself, you see it unfold,” Lawrence said. “You have to work through that to see it all happen.”

As an example, Lawrence credited a completion to Jones on Wednesday that could be traced to a conversation in the previous days about adjusting to a flatter route against a certain coverage.

“He did just that, and I hit him on it,” Lawrence said. “Just seeing that all come together, it does take time.”

It may be a bit early to consider this a prove-it year for Lawrence, who won a national championship as a freshman at Clemson. But the expectations come with the territory and the talent. The Jaguars can’t blow it with Lawrence, which is further underscored by their aggressive offseason free-agent moves after hiring Pederson as the QB-handler Meyer quickly proved not to be.

Pederson knows. Lawrence tied for the NFL lead with 17 interceptions last season, which can certainly happen with a rookie. Yet the turnovers may also reflect a root cause. After Lawrence (who won’t appear in Saturday’s exhibition against the Falcons) played his most extensive time in preseason last weekend, Pederson reasoned that his quarterback needs to take a deep breath to get into a better flow. Lawrence played the entire first half at Pittsburgh, leading the offense to two field goals on four drives – and missing with incompletions on three third downs.

“We’ve just got to get him to calm down early in the football game and settle in,” Pederson told reporters after the game.

Press Taylor, the Jaguars' new offensive coordinator, offered a broader view when asked Wednesday to assess Lawrence’s progress. But he also amplified on the themes that Lawrence mentioned about developing chemistry and mastering the system.

“That and just handling everything,” said Taylor, who spent last season on Frank Reich’s staff with the Indianapolis Colts and previously won a Super Bowl under Pederson with the Philadelphia Eagles. “Breaking the huddle on time. Understanding the play clock. Understanding the situations we’re putting him into in practice. Operating at the line of scrimmage – calling plays, changing plays, whatever that may be. That’s kind of a never-ending process.”

A year ago, Lawrence was splitting first-team reps with since-traded Gardner Minshew, despite his status as the new franchise quarterback. It was one in a series of questionable moves by Meyer as he tried to break in Lawrence, who undoubtedly could have used every first-team rep possible as a rookie.

That was then. The toxic culture that emerged under Meyer is contrasted by a coach drawing praise in the locker room for professionalism. And Lawrence maintains his comfort level with Pederson and Taylor includes a lot of collaboration in working the schemes.

“Very conversational,” Lawrence said of the mesh with the coaches. “They see something a certain way, but they’re always picking our brains to see what we like.”

Time will tell. But after last year’s disaster, the signs suggest that Lawrence might be poised for a big leap on the learning curve.

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trevor Lawrence shakes off Urban Meyer debacle, moves on with Jaguars