Breaking Down Trevor Lawrence's Standout Game in Denver

Jacksonville's franchise quarterback was stellar against the Broncos' top defense, completing 23 of 36 passes for 279 yards and three touchdowns, plus a rushing score. When the Jaguars needed him most, he came up big with key throws on all three levels of the field or with his legs.

Taking an in-depth look at the All-22, the former Clemson Tigers superstar signal-caller and top overall draft pick was surgical and fearless in a hostile environment that many teams had been unable to thrive in. Let's begin this film breakdown to see how he was able to do it.

On a key early down in the first quarter, the Jaguars face a 3rd-and-long with the Broncos playing Cover 1 robber. The call here is A deep crosser from No. 11 Parker Washington with a field-side deep hitch by No. 7 Brian Thomas Jr. and a backside dig from No. 3 Jakobi Meyers. You would like to see Lawrence trigger to Meyers, and it’s where his eyes go initially while scanning through his progressions.

Washington gets downfield separation late while Lawrence is navigating the pocket. He scrambles to his left with the protection sound, pairs with Washington, and makes an incredible throw moving to his left to him for a 21-yard gain.

This is an example of how great Lawrence is with his arm angles and flexibility, generating torque in his midsection to develop the RPMs necessary to make throws like this. Very few quarterbacks can make this type of throw, such as Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, and maybe Matthew Stafford.

Physical traits have never been a question for Lawrence, but rather, his consistency has been a key factor throughout his career. For the last four weeks, I believe he is playing his best football, ever.

The Jaguars were nails on third down, converting eight of 15 attempts. Down in the low red area on third-and-short, Coen goes with an empty call on this down against man coverage (Cover 1 with a linebacker playing the high hole-hook shell). Washington is matched with nickel Ja’Quan McMillan on the slot fade as the No. 2 receiver with Thomas being the No. 1 on the hitch, Meyers the No. 3 on a whip route–a variation of sticks with the No. 2 fade.

You can tell when a quarterback and receiver have great chemistry when they are both aligned with the throw and the positioning for the ball. This is an absurd placement from Lawrence, as Washington adjusts to make an excellent catch almost behind McMillan’s back for the touchdown.

I love this call from Coen and the throw from Lawrence. Wyatt Milum is going to act as the second tight end for 12 personnel, but this is basically a jumbo package. No. 85 Brenton Strange is going to motion left to right and then to strong-I as a queso fullback.

Denver sends a five-man rush that is picked up well, while the run is sold by Strange’s "blocking" before inserting himself through the A-gap to run a corner while Thomas and Meyers clear out on a nine and eight route, respectively. Once again, the Broncos are playing man coverage, and Greenlaw gets drawn to the action before scrambling back into coverage to stay with Strange, who already has separation as Lawrence layers this pass between the linebacker and safety for a 23-yard gain.

Coen and Lawrence seemed to have an answer for a lot of the pressure packages Denver sent at Lawrence.

On this second-and-medium from inside their own 20, the Broncos send a five-man pressure. Meyers is motioning left to right across the formation, running a deep dig to the middle of the field. The Broncos look to be in quarters, and while the linebackers do gain great depth, Lawrence steps up in the pocket and fires a laser to Meyers for 25 yards.

Here’s another example on a second-and-medium with 19 seconds left in the half. The Jaguars are in doubles out of 11 personnel with a drag-dig pattern and a flood concept on the left. The Broncos send an overload blitz, and right tackle Anton Harrison gets beaten by edge rusher Jonathon Cooper.

Lawrence sees that Thomas has the leverage advantage against the overhang safety and Pat Surtain II in trail coverage. Anticipating the pressure, Lawrence immediately begins sliding left and converts a third-down pass to Thomas for a first down.

This play exemplifies not just Coen’s creativity but his willingness to use Lawrence as an effective runner. Down at the goal line, Coen’s wrinkle here of Thomas in the backfield sets off confusion for the linebackers. Watch the MIKE tell the safety to match with Thomas, who gets sent into orbit motion with the safety cheating inside. The keeper for Lawrence is well-blocked by a pulling Ezra Cleveland, who takes on the free defender, which allows Lawrence to score his third of four touchdowns on the night.

The clips below also showcase Lawrence’s mobility. Until the end of time, his touchdown run against Ohio State in the 2019 College Football Playoff semi-final showcases the type of incredible, yet underrated, athleticism that he possesses.

We haven’t seen Lawrence used on any sort of keeper or read option, nor have we seen Coen show any comfort in doing so until now, especially in recent weeks. Lawrence converted several key first downs, including one late in the game where he dove to convert a third down and essentially seal the game.

Overall, this performance by Lawrence can be added to the best games of his career, considering the environment, the stakes, and the potential trajectory the victory in Denver could have for Jacksonville in the coming weeks. Since Week 13, Lawrence has been playing the best football of his career, and the analytics back that up.

We’re seeing a quarterback almost six years into his career, finally beginning to showcase the potential he has always had of being a top passer in the NFL. He is arguably a Top-10 signal-caller in football, and just slayed his biggest challenge of the regular season. If the Jaguars are to make a deep playoff run or secure the No. 1 seed in the AFC by some nature, Lawrence will be one of the key reasons for that.