Sitting at 8-7, the Jacksonville Jaguars are looking to close out their AFC South division lead after coming off of four straight losses. Unfortunately for them, this latest news appears that their starting signal caller has been playing through a more serious injury than what the organization may have initially believed..
Jacksonville Jaguars QB Throwing Shoulder
According to the latest from Ian Rapoport, Trevor Lawrence has a sprained AC joint and while he has not been officially ruled out, as of now, it is not looking good for him. He is ‘doubtful’ to play against the Carolina Panthers this upcoming Sunday.
Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Trevor Lawrence was forced to exit the action early. While diving for a fourth and one conversion, the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback would stay in to complete the touchdown scoring drive, but was replaced by C.J. Beathard to finish the remainder of the game.
Afterwards, Trevor Lawrence shared the following about the play that led him to need evaluation:
When I landed I knew something was off. And the next play it kind of hurt to throw. I wanted to finish the drive and we out and we were able to get some points. And then on the two point conversion attempt could tell by the way I threw it I couldn’t really get my shoulder up good enough to really keep playing.
Noticeably in discomfort, Trevor Lawrence tried to keep himself out there for his teammates, but what we now know is a right shoulder sprain, proved to be too much for him to keep playing.
As someone who has already taken a lot of hits, and has played through a lot of injuries and pain this year already, the team appears to be ready to play without him in their next game.
Jacksonville Jaguars Replacements
In a sign that the Jacksonville Jaguars are looking to solidify their QB room for the probability of not having Trevor Lawrence on the field, the team signed Matt Barkley to the team. Fresh off of the New York Giants practice squad, Matt Barkley has already been elevated to the 53 man roster.
Seeing as most teams will only carry two quarterbacks (with an emergency quarterback who is waiting, just in case) this is a good indicator that they know Trevor Lawrence will be unable to throw on Sunday.C.J. Beathard is a quarterback out of Iowa, who managed to be able to get some points on the board against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as he threw for one touchdown, and 94 yards in his limited action.
Matt Barkley is a quarterback out of USC, who last saw action in a regular season game as a member of the Buffalo Bills in 2020.
With Trevor Lawrence likely to miss the game, the Jacksonville Jaguars will be looking to solidify their playoff position with a win against the Carolina Panthers. With a win they would move to 9-7. A win would be a much needed victory in a division that is currently crowded at the top, with the Indianapolis Colts, and Houston Texans also sitting at 8-7 at the moment.