The Jacksonville Jaguars are already considering their options when it comes to former first-overall draft pick Trevor Lawrence. The former Clemson star is entering the fourth year of his rookie deal, making him eligible for a contract extension at any point.
A contract extension could make Lawrence one of the highest-paid players in the NFL, but the money isn’t the first thing on the quarterback’s mind.
“There’s definitely been some conversations,” Lawrence shared on Tuesday, via ESPN. “As far as where that’s at now, it’s not really my focus. I’d love to obviously be a Jag for as long as possible. We love it here, and I love where we’re headed as an organization.
“I feel like I’m just getting better every year and my best ball’s definitely ahead of me.”
In his first three years in the league, Lawrence has earned one Pro Bowl nomination and led the team to two winning seasons after a 3-14 start. He’s completed 63.8% of his passes for 11,770 yards and 58 touchdowns with 39 interceptions. He’s been the most successful of the five first-round quarterbacks taken in 2021, which includes Zach Wilson, Trey Lance, Justin Fields and Mac Jones – who is now his understudy in Jacksonville.
Extension ‘not really the focus’ for Lawrence before Year 4
After helping the Jaguars get off to an 8-3 start last season, a concussion and an ankle injury caused Lawrence to miss the first starts of his career and the team subsequently dropped the last five of six games. Jacksonville narrowly missed out on a playoff appearance and the sting of that disappointment has the QB locked in on winning games – not signing deals.
“My job isn’t going to change whether I get extended or not before this season,” Lawrence said. “My job is to go win games and to be the best I can be for this team so we can have a chance to win a Super Bowl. Even if I get the contract extension, that’s still my job even more so. So for me, I have the same focus and the same mindset.
“I can’t lie. Obviously it would be nice to have that done and feel good about it, but, no, it’s not really the focus right now. I know where we’re at, I know where we’re heading and I know what I have to do and there’s some improvements that I have to make going forward.”
After the Jaguars took him first overall in the 2021 NFL Draft, Lawrence inked a four-year deal for $36.79 million. As it stands, the team has until May 2 to exercise their fifth-year option on his rookie deal, which would keep him around through 2025. It would also only cost them $25.66 million, which is half the going rate of the league’s best-paid quarterbacks. However, the longer they wait to sign him to a long-term deal, the higher the price tag could go.
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