Trevor Lawrence showed why he’s a franchise QB vs. Ravens

The feet stood out the most.

For Jacksonville Jaguars fans, there was a lot to love about the performance from quarterback Trevor Lawrence in Sunday’s comeback victory over the Baltimore Ravens. There was the arm talent, that was on display throughout the contest and certainly in the the fourth quarter. There was the ball placement, as Lawrence found ways to shape throws around defenders and attack the leverage of coverage players.

But rewatching that game this morning, Lawrence’s footwork stood out the most.

Lawrence’s outing against the Ravens, in which he completed 29 of 37 passes for 321 yards and 3 touchdowns, without an interception, may be looked back on in weeks and months to come as the moment that he truly arrived. But it was how Lawrence went about things in that performance, particularly in the fourth quarter, that stands out.

And it all begins with his feet.

Whether it was creating space in the pocket, working through progressions, or cutting short drops to take advantage of opportunities, what Lawrence did with his feet is perhaps the biggest sign yet that the Jaguars have found their quarterback.

It began early in the fourth quarter. We can start with this play, a 2nd and 15 from early in the quarter. Jacksonville dials up a dual stick-nod concept to the left side of the field, with both tight end Evan Engram and wide receiver Tim Jones running stick routes before breaking vertically. On the right side of the field, Christian Kirk runs a quick curl route, while Jamel Agnew runs a dig route:

Lawrence opens to his left, to read out the stick-nod routes from Engram and T. Jones. The QB even gives this a pump fake to try and sell the defenders. But with Baltimore dropping into a soft Cover 3, those routes are closed to Lawrence, and he has to work to his right. He comes back to the right and fires the dig route to Agnew to move the chains. As you watch this play, pay particular attention to his feet, how he works from left to right, before climbing the pocket to create space and ultimately make the throw:

Later in the fourth quarter, the Jaguars would face a critical 4th and 8 with just under nine minutes remaining. Trailing by nine, and with the ball on the Baltimore 45-yard line, Doug Pederson keeps his offense on the field.

Lawrence and the Jaguars pick up the first down, with Lawrence connecting with Zay Jones on a corner route to the right side of the field. Again, watch his feet on this drop, and how quickly the quarterback gets the ball out of his hands:

Generally speaking, there are two different ways a quarterback can finish their drop when using a traditional 3-, 5- or 7-step drop. There is the “hitch-and-throw,” where the quarterback hits his final step, and then hitches in the pocket, gathering himself as he steps towards the line of scrimmage. You typically see this on deeper routes, where you need an extra second or two to time things up with a deeper route concept, as well as needing a little extra to push the ball downfield.

Then there is the “hit-and-throw,” where the quarterback drives his back foot into the turf on that final step and immediately throws, without the benefit of a hitch. You often see this on quick-game concepts, where timing is more critical and velocity is not as big of a concern.

Lawrence uses that “hit-and-throw” technique on this pass, a corner route in the deeper part of the playbook.

That is, well, incredibly impressive. To make that throw, in this spot, with this footwork, is very impressive to say the least. It speaks to the arm talent that had many convinced that Lawrence was truly a transformational prospect at the position.

His footwork played a critical role on the play to finish the drive, this touchdown to Agnew:

This touchdown starts with the motion, as Agnew comes towards the football, and then runs an out-breaking route. With cornerback Marcus Peters trailing him, the presnap movement creates an advantage for Agnew, because when the ball is snapped, Peters is trailing Agnew, creating a leverage advantage for the receiver.

But as you watch that play, look at Lawrence’s feet. This is just a one-step, catch-and-throw situation. Lawrence is playing this more like a middle infielder turning a double play than a QB on an NFL Sunday, because if he takes any longer than he does, Peters has a chance to break on this throw. Instead he snaps this pass off in a hurry, and the Jaguars are in the end zone.

Now let’s talk about the game-winning drive. The first critical play? A 4th and 5 with under 90 seconds remaining. Lawrence connects with Marvin Jones Jr. to move the chains, but watch as he navigates interior pressure, forcing him to make this throw off his back foot:

As you can see, particularly from the first angle, Lawrence has Patrick Queen bearing down on him, creating almost-instant pressure in his face. Because of this, he cannot step into this throw, and has to deliver this out route from off-platform.

He does so with ease, putting the ball in a perfect spot.

A few plays later, the Jaguars would face a 3rd and 6 at the Baltimore 39-yard line, Only 36 seconds remained in the game, and the Jaguars needed to get into the end zone, trailing 27-20. Here is where Lawrence makes perhaps his best throw of the game. Jacksonville dials up a three-level concept, with Z. Jones releasing vertically, Engram running a deep out route, and Kirk running the quick curl route:

This is a perfect read, and if possible, and even better throw. With the Ravens dropping into a two-deep coverage, Z. Jones’s route takes him into the soft spot along the boundary, away from the safety and behind the cornerback. Lawrence makes the aggressive — but correct — decision to attack this area of the defense, and puts this throw into the ideal spot. Z. Jones finishes the play for a 29-yard gain, setting the Jaguars up with a 1st and goal at the Baltimore 10-yard line:

For his part, Z. Jones does a great job on his route. He uses a jab step to the outside, which gets cornerback Brandon Stephens twisted up, and then when Z. Jones breaks upfield, Stephens is in recovery mode.

Also, watch that play again, paying attention to Engram’s route. He slows up, noticing that the ball is heading towards Z. Jones, and then jumps for joy as the play is completed.

I love this sport.

They would score on the next play.

The touchdown is another great read from Lawrence, with an even better throw to boot. Jacksonville dials up a mirrored go/flat combination. On the left side of the field, Z. Jones runs the go route while Kirk runs the flat. To the right side of the field, M. Jones runs the go route while Engram releases to the flat:

With the football on the left hash, one might think that Lawrence will pick that side of the field to work with, as mirrored route concepts are often “pick a side” designs where the quarterback will take his favorite matchup, or the easier throw.

However, when you have an arm like Lawrence, any side is the easier throw.

Lawrence opens to his left, but then brings his eyes and feet to the right side of the field. With Baltimore in two-high, and Engram uncovered, you might expect Lawrence to throw the flat route. But time is a concern, and lacking a timeout, Lawrence takes his shot, again attacking the hole in the coverage.

To complete this play, he needs to put this ball into the proverbial shoebox.

Which he does:

Of course, that only got the Jaguars within one point. They would still need the two-point conversion.

Which they got, courtesy of Lawrence ripping an out route into a perfect spot, away from the leverage of the cornerback:

Of the many aspects of this play that stands out, what stands out most is the decisiveness. Lawrence knows exactly where he wants to go with the football, and as Z. Jones is coming out of his break, the ball is already exploding out of Lawrence’s hands. The throw is put in the perfect spot, and the Jaguars have the lead.

This game. This quarter. This drive. These are the moments the Jaguars envisioned when they drafted Lawrence first overall.

After the game, Lawrence had a simple message about his performance:

It was great to see that guy on Sunday.

Jaguars fans are now hoping they see him every week.