Jan 4, 2026; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) and Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (98) shake hands after the game at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images Travis Register-Imagn Images

Why Trevor Lawrence's Emergence Was Overblown

Originally posted on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI
By Andy Quach | Last updated Jan 7, 2026 7:00 AM ET

Trevor Lawrence wrapped up his breakout year with another dominant performance to close the 2025 NFL regular season. Against the Tennessee Titans, he threw for 255 yards and three touchdowns on 22-of-30 passing to lead his Jacksonville Jaguars to a 41-7 victory and the AFC South title.

He could have padded his stats a little more, too, and it might have helped bolster his dark-horse MVP case . He checked out of the game for the last time early in the fourth quarter, after finding Parker Washington for a 23-yard gain. Nick Mullens would wrap up that drive for the Jags to extend the lead to 34 points. T-Law could have checked out much earlier, but he stayed in until he could hit 4,000 yards on the season, his third in five years in the league.

Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images

Trevor Lawrence has always been here

With the Jacksonville Jaguars earning home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs behind an incredible 13-4 mark in the regular season, it's impossible to deny the tremendous growth this team has shown in its first year under Liam Coen. As promised, the new head coach breathed life into the offense, largely by elevating quarterback Trevor Lawrence to his full potential.

T-Law and the Jaguars shocked a lot of people this season, so much so that many have said that Lawrence has reached a whole new level. While he's certainly taken his team to loftier heights than he ever had before, ESPN's Dan Graziano believes that this version of Lawrence was always there:

Trevor Lawrence season stats

4,006 passing yards
360 rushing yards
29 passing TDs
9 rushing TDs

And most important: 13 wins

Top 5. No doubt pic.twitter.com/68svJc89sI
— keanu (@keanukarg) January 4, 2026

"The stats say Lawrence is pretty much the same guy he has always been... Now, this isn't a criticism... But the idea that Lawrence is playing better than he ever has isn't supported by the underlying numbers. Coen should be given credit for figuring out the whole picture around him and putting him in an offense that minimizes his weaknesses and maximizes his strengths. The Jaguars' rushing differential has seen the greatest year-over-year improvement of any team in the league. They were outgained by 525 rushing yards last season, and their rush differential was plus-501 this season."

"Lawrence is the same player he has always been, just with a better structure around him. It's not necessarily that he's fixed; it's that maybe the Jaguars are." There has long been a belief that the Jaguars weren't putting their franchise quarterback in a position to succeed. This season, he's shown what he can do in the right situation.

This article first appeared on Jacksonville Jaguars on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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