Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence to start vs. Browns despite ankle injury
Despite suffering a high ankle sprain against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football, Trevor Lawrence will start for the Jacksonville Jaguars today as they take on the Cleveland Browns only six days later, the team announced shortly before inactives were announced.
Live updates: Jacksonville Jaguars play Cleveland Browns. Is Trevor Lawrence playing?
Lawrence, who has never missed a game in 48 opportunities, including the playoffs, practiced on a limited basis Thursday and Friday this week after missing all of practice on Wednesday to rehab his injury.
On Friday, Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson was "optimistic" about the quarterback's potential to suit up Sunday, but still left it up in the air as to whether or not he would be cleared to play by team doctors.
“We’ve gone through this with him, we did it last year with the toe and this year with the knee. He’s played, if history suggests, he’s played the next week," said Pederson. "Obviously, a year ago in Detroit, he played the second half on that injury. It just to me shows his toughness, physical toughness, mental toughness. I believe when your quarterback exudes that, I think it does send a message to the rest of your team in a good way."
Before kickoff, Lawrence warmed up, testing out his ankle with various exercises before warming up his arm and heading back to the locker room.
The Jaguars deemed seven others inactive, including QB Nathan Rourke, who will operate as the team's third, emergency QB today, CB Tyson Campbell (quad), CB Tre Herndon (concussion), OLB Yasir Abdullah, OL Walker Little (hamstring), TE Brandon Strange (foot) and DL Foley Fatukasi (heel).
Rourke will be eligible to enter the game if Lawrence and backup QB C.J. Beathard are ruled out due to injury during the game.
For the Browns, the team ruled out two starters, CB Denzel Ward and OT Dawand Jones along with LB Mohamoud Diabate, C Luke Wypler, DE Isaiah McGuire and DT Siaki Ika.
Demetrius Harvey is the Jacksonville Jaguars reporter for the Florida Times-Union. You can follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @Demetrius82.
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jaguars' Trevor Lawrence starts vs. Browns with high ankle sprain
