Thursday will mark a week away from the 2021 NFL Draft, which means the Jacksonville Jaguars are inching closer to the probable selection of Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the first overall pick. And after having months to do their research on him, Jags general manager Trent Baalke told the media that the front office has yet to find a single negative on Lawrence.
“Well, the easiest way to answer that is [there are] no negatives,” said Baalke when asked what the team has learned about the Clemson star over meetings. “[With] all the research we’ve done, you’re always looking for the stars to align when you’re looking at prospects, whether that be from a physical, mental, character aspect, whatever the case may be. With his situation, like many others in this draft, the stars all align and that’s what you’re looking for.”
The next step in their decision to take Lawrence will be to meet with owner Shad Khan in the coming days as he will have the final say. Although Baalke admitted that the Jags received calls about pick No. 1, it’s hard to imagine them coming off the selection as Khan started the offseason stressing the importance of a franchise quarterback.
“We’ve fielded a couple of calls, but I think we’re going to hold tight,” Baalke said. “Again, that decision is made organizationally and our ownership is definitely involved with that as well.”
Khan understands better than anyone that Lawrence can help make the team more marketable and help them on the field, too, so one would have to think the decision will be a no-brainer.
