Urban Meyer Gives Frustrating Update on Jaguars' Week 1 Starting QB

When the Jacksonville Jaguars selected former Clemson Tigers QB Trevor Lawrence first overall at the 2021 NFL Draft, it was clear that he was their quarterback of the future. In fact, most even pegged him as the unanimous starter for the upcoming season. However, as training camp continues, the team has refused to publicly commit.

Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer announced on Thursday that it's still up in the air as to whether or Lawrence or third-year QB Gardner Minshew will be under center in Week 1 of the regular season.

While Minshew was far from awful last year, this announcement is frustrating because it seems odd that the Jaguars would draft Lawrence — a generational prospect — and not use him right away.

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On the other hand, there's also a chance that this is all a smokescreen by Meyer to increase Minshew's trade stock. There have been rumors of him potentially being moved throughout the offseason, especially since Minshew has proven he's overqualified for a backup role.

As long as Meyer keeps treating Minshew like a No. 1 option, others around the league could perceive him in the same light. The 25-year-old started eight games last season, finishing the campaign with 2,259 passing yards and 16 touchdowns to 5 interceptions.

Meanwhile, Lawrence's impressive collegiate resume has given plenty of reasons as to why he deserves the Jaguars starting job. He suited up in 40 games during his time at Clemson, finishing with 10,098 passing yards for 90 TDs to 17 INTs. That's not even to mention his long list of accomplishments, ranging from leading the Tigers to the 2018 National Champion to receiving first-team All-ACC and All-American honors in 2020.

At the end of the day, it's only a matter of time until Lawrence is under center in Jacksonville. And it would still be something of a shock to see Minshew start in Week 1, regardless of Meyer's comments on the matter.

Nevertheless, there's about a month for Meyer to make his decision, which means plenty of time for both signal-callers to prove why they're deserving of the opportunity. The Jaguars are projected to begin the season 1-0 as FanDuel Sportsbook is favoring them to defeat the Houston Texans in Week 1 as 3-point favorites.

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