Trevor Lawrence's injury puts Jaguars at risk of losing grasp on AFC South

The Jacksonville Jaguars relayed some unfortunate injury news on Friday when they ruled out starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence for Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers. 

It will be the first game in Lawrence's three-year career that he will miss, and it comes after a series of injuries that finally forced him out of the lineup. The move is also going to put their chances at holding onto the AFC South in jeopardy. 

While it is the shoulder injury that Lawrence suffered a week ago against Tampa Bay that is sidelining him this week, he has been dealing with an ankle injury as well and was in concussion protocol over the past month.

C.J. Beathard will get the start in his absence. 

It's problematic for Jacksonville for obvious reasons as they are not in a position to be without its franchise quarterback. However, even with Lawrence in the lineup, the Jaguars have slowly been fading from the playoff race over the past two months and are just 2-5 since their bye week. Their current four-game losing streak has seen them turn what looked to be an insurmountable lead in the division into a three-way tie with the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans.

All of a sudden the Jaguars went from looking to be a lock for a home playoff game and perhaps a contender for the No. 1 seed, to perhaps no longer making the playoffs. 

It is a complete 180 from what the Jaguars did a year ago when they overcame a terrible first half of the season to get hot in the second half, win the division, and advance to the divisional round of the AFC playoffs. 

On one hand, it would be easy to think the Jaguars will be fine this week against a two-win Panthers team even without Lawrence. But nothing is given in the NFL, and a backup quarterback situation could turn any game into a coin toss. Given the Jaguars' remaining schedule (Carolina and Tennessee) there is no excuse for them to not be able to secure two wins and hold onto the division — especially when one of Indianapolis and Houston is likely to lose at least one game given their head-to-head Week 18 meeting. If Jacksonville does lose the division, the 2023 season would be a massive failure and disappointment given the expectations that surrounded the franchise entering this season.

Last year's division title and playoff win, combined with the addition of wide receiver Calvin Ridley, made the Jaguars an easy pick to win the AFC South and potentially contend for a Super Bowl bid. 

Even if Jacksonville can somehow survive without Lawrence, they do not resemble a playoff contender right now. They must figure it out — and fast.