Injuries to four of the Jacksonville Jaguars' five offensive linemen almost convinced coach Urban Mayer not to play quarterback Trevor Lawrence in the preseason finale against Dallas on Sunday, but the need for Lawrence to get rolling and a first-team offense left him. Changed. Mind.
It turned out to be the right decision.
Lawrence completed 11 of 12 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns in three drives with a first-team offense in the Jaguars' 34–14 victory at AT&T Stadium. Those were the only two touchdowns the unit scored in the preseason, and although it came against the Cowboys' backup, it was what Meyer wanted to see.
Mayer said, "I made that decision [to play Lawrence] and was very angry about it but he has to play."
Lawrence led a 68-yard drive that he held with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Pharaoh Cooper and included a 38-yard throw to Phillip Dorset on the sidelines. The Jaguars' second drive ended on Lawrence's only imperfection, but he then led a 67-yard drive that ended with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Lavisca Schenault.
"I liked it," Lawrence said. "I thought we had a good game plan. Honestly, it's all about execution, though. I think we had a good game plan last week as well. We didn't execute it. ... It doesn't matter what you run into, if everyone is on the same page and everyone knows it, you'll play well.
"We felt down today. We were all on the same page. We communicated well. We kept it simple, and then it was just for me to be precise, make quick decisions, get the ball out of my hands, and play my guys. Lets do it, and that was the difference. The run game was also great, so it was great."
Cam Robinson (ankle), left guard Andrew Norwell (elbow), center Brandon Linder (knee) and right guard A.J. For the game, Kane (reserve/COVID-19 list), right tackle young Taylor was the only starter to play. The Jaguars started rookie Walker Little on left tackle, second-year player Tre'voir Wallace-Sims on left guard, veteran backup Tyler Shetley on center, and fourth-year Will Richardson Jr. on right guard.
Robinson, Linder and Norwell are expected to return in the first match against Houston on September 12.
The Jaguars' first-team offense scored just three points in the first two preseason games, and Lawrence completed 20 of 32 passes for 184 yards in losses to Cleveland and New Orleans. After naming Lawrence a starter for the season on Wednesday, Meyer said he'd like to see the offense "get some really good points."
The Jaguars scored in their opening possession and the first-team offense covered 159 yards in their three drives. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevel mixed in elements of the spread offense that Lawrence played in Clemson: a few quick throws, bubble screens and rollouts.
"It's a great feeling — a much better feeling coming into the locker room today as opposed to this time last week," Lawrence said. "Just a step in the right direction. Keep getting better. Now they're going to count for real. We put everything we have into getting ready for Houston. Going into the season took a lot of confidence. It's good to end the season with a game like this."