Jaguars preparing to face Bucs without Trevor Lawrence who remains in concussion protocol

After Sunday's loss to the Baltimore Ravens, tight end Evan Engram talked about the sense of urgency the Jacksonville Jaguars needed to have as they wind down the season.

Riding a three-game losing streak, Engram said "there's no comfort" in the losses. On Wednesday, head coach Doug Pederson confirmed that’s the message he’s preaching to his team this week.

“I think you’ve got to feel a sense of urgency,” he said. “It’s kind of like, your back’s against the wall a little bit.”

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Pederson, who's stoic personality is one of his best coaching traits, said Monday he’s preached to the team to not worry or panic.

The Jaguars remain atop the AFC South. They own the tiebreakers with the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts. And they have a team fleshed with players from last year's wonder-run.

“It's figuring out how to win, how to win a game right now,” Pederson said. “Everybody has to pay attention to their job and just do what they've been asked to do.”

Pederson urges the team to limit mental errors

In each of the last three games there were opportunities to win the game late. The Jaguars trailed the Ravens 10-7 in the third quarter and couldn’t sack Lamar Jackson, which allowed him to pass the ball to the goal line for an eventual touchdown.

Jacksonville only lost by four to Cleveland even though they had four turnovers on offense and multiple mental lapses by the defense.

And they had a chance to win the game in regulation against Cincinnati but were unable to convert a field goal, opening the door for the Bengals to win in overtime.

“It's a mentality. It's a mindset that, ‘Hey, sometimes enough's enough,’ and, you just gotta take pride in the opportunities you get,” Pederson said.

Those mental errors have kept Jacksonville in its three-game slide. It’s turned Sunday’s game into an almost must-win scenario.

And that must win game might happen without quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Lawrence remains in NFL concussion protocol, backup CJ Beathard prepared to play vs. Buccaneers

Pederson announced on Wednesday that Lawrence is still in concussion protocol. The severity of the concussion he suffered is unknown, but Lawrence was in the Jaguars’ facility Wednesday.

Backup quarterback CJ Beathard told reporters he’s game planning as if he’s starting this weekend, something he does every week.

“To me it's the same. I'm taking a lot more reps at practice and stuff, but I’m preparing the same way,” he said. “You gotta prepare as if you're gonna be going and then, hopefully, [Lawrence] clears concussion protocol by the end of this week for sure.”

The last game Beathard started was in 2020 as a member of the San Francisco 49ers. But this is the third time this season where Lawrence’s game status is in question in the week leading up to a game.

“I think the mindset, being my seventh year in the league, I’ve had a lot of experience,” Beathard said. “Even the games where the starter isn't banged up or whatever. Just preparing like you might have to go into the game. That's just kind of what you have to do.”

Beathard is 2-10 in his 12 starts in the NFL. He’s completed 59.5 percent of his passes for 3,614 yards and 18 touchdowns in his career but has still yet to throw a touchdown as a member of the Jaguars.

Lawrence did not practice Wednesday, giving Beathard a chance to take first team reps with receivers and running backs in the event that he’ll be playing.

“You can't really simulate throwing an out route or go route to Calvin [Ridley] with the speed he has and the way he runs routes,” Beathard said. "[It] definitely helps getting routes with the starting guys in there.”

Injuries Update

Aside from Lawrence, Pederson said most of the team came out of Sunday’s game clean. Zay Jones was the only other player who suffered an injury, hurting his hamstring late in the contest.

“Zay is getting better. His strength is good but [he’s] still week-to-week,” Pederson said.

Tyson Campbell (quad) and Andre Cisco (groin) were both at practice after missing the game against the Ravens. Same goes for Walker Little (hamstring) and Ezra Cleveland (knee) who were both limited participants during last week’s practice but played in the game.

Christian Braswell (hamstring), Travis Etienne (ribs), D’Ernest Johnson (knee), Ross Matiscik (back), and Brenton Strange (foot) were all participants in Wednesday’s practice after being on the injury report last week.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville Jaguars prepare for Buccaneers without Trevor Lawrence