Why Jaguars must bench Trevor Lawrence for Mac Jones after Eagles loss

Trevor Lawrence is the franchise. The Jacksonville Jaguars took him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, and they gave Lawrence a five-year, $275 million contract extension before the season. The Jaguars are all-in on Lawrence, which is precisely why they need to bench him after their latest loss, a 28-23 disappointment against the Philadelphia Eagles.

It has not been the season that was anticipated in Jacksonville. The Jaguars are 2-7, fourth in the AFC South, and there's a real thought that head coach Doug Peterson isn't going to get a fourth season to try to turn this thing around. It has been a disappointment, for sure, especially when considering the fact that the Jaguars were 9-8 in his first two seasons, with year one seeing them make the playoffs for the first time since 2007.

Lawrence has been a disappointment, too. A Pro Bowler in that 2022 season, he was thought of as among the rising stars of the NFL. He wasn't yet at the Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, and Josh Allen level, but he was seen to be on that next plane and on his way up. After throwing for 4,016 and 21 touchdowns (14 interceptions) last season, he's thrown for 2,004 and 11 touchdowns, but with six interceptions, so far in 2024.

He's also now injured, with an injury to his left shoulder suffered against the Eagles.

Lawrence wants to play, and he's saying all the right things. He was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice, but he wants to play on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

"That's the goal," Lawrence said when asked about playing against the Vikings, according to AL.com. "I've been doing everything I can to be out there. Like when I've gotten banged up in the past, I try to do everything I can during the week to prepare myself to play on Sunday and just put as much time as possible into that and to get healthy, so that's the way my mind is right now."

Why the Jaguars need to play Mac Jones instead of Trevor Lawrence

This isn't meant to be a long-term move for the Jaguars, of course, but at least heading into Week 10 against the 6-1 Vikings, it's vital that Pederson and his staff bench Lawrence.

Again, he's the franchise, and that's really what this is all about.The Jaguars have spent too much money and invested too much sweat and equity into Lawrence to just throw him out there in what is ultimately a meaningless game. It's a home game for the Jags at EverBank stadium, and owner Shahid Khan surely doesn't want to make it any less appealing for fans to fill the stadium seats, pay for parking, and buy expensive beer, but the Jaguars need to look at sitting Lawrence as an investment in their future.They're 2-7, and there's very little hope of turning this season around. Wideout Christian Kirk was lost for the season with a collarbone injury against the Green Bay Packers, star rookie Brian Thomas Jr. has been limited and banged up, and the same can be said of running backs Tank Bigsby, Travis Etienne Jr., and All-Pro guard Brandon Scherff.All the players around Lawrence who would hypothetically provide him protection or cushion (via the running game) are banged up as well. The Jags are also going up against Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who is known to be super aggressive. He's not afraid to send the blitz and get after the quarterback.No offense to Jones, but for the Jaguars' long-term future, it's better for him to try to navigate Flores' defense while Lawrence gets another week to rest that banged-up shoulder. Jacksonville isn't even in for Jones for much. He costs $2.7 million this year and will be a free agent in 2025. It sounds harsh, but if he gets banged up against the Vikings, the Jaguars will figure it out. That's why they just signed veteran C.J. Beathard to be the team's backup-to-the-backup. On the flip side, they'd also be allowing Jones to prove that he's not an extreme NFL draft bust. Remember, the Patriots spent the 15th overall pick in 2021 on him. "I'm always ready to go in. I've had a good experience with that, and that's my job, and I focus on that and prepare my mindset for that moment," Jones told the media on Wednesday, according to MassLive. "And definitely, as a backup quarterback, you never know when that's going to be. I always say, 'You're not taking the first snap, but you can take every other snap, so you just got to be ready.' And that's the mentality I've always had."

Jones says he's ready to play, so give him the shot. Look at what that's done for Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Malik Willis. Perhaps Jones will be able to revive his career as well. Even if he can't, though, Lawrence will at least remain out of harm's way for another week. Andrew Kulha has been a professional sports writer since 2010. His work has been featured in publications such as Bleacher Report, 247Sports, Yardbarker, Forbes, Saturday Tradition, Saturday Down South, Prep Hoops and many others.