Former Jacksonville Jaguars running back Fred Taylor comments on Trevor Lawrence’s contract

One of the best players in franchise history has shared his opinion on the largest contract the Jacksonville Jaguars have ever given out.

After Trevor Lawrence’s contract was extended last week, former Jaguars running back Fred Taylor is convinced that the franchise passer can match the Lawrence deal – and now he will have to.

Speaking to Dan Hicken and Jeff Prosser on “The Drill” on 1010XL, the legendary Jaguars running back gave his opinion on how to view Lawrence’s contract after a stellar end to the 2022 season and a disappointing 2023 season.

Even though the 2023 season was not what many expected from Lawrence and the Jaguars as a whole, Taylor has reason to believe that Lawrence’s contract will be well received in the locker room.

“And you know, he showed a lot of grit and determination (in 2023) and still tried to be out there and still tried to be a leader. The results weren’t amazing. But the heart, the influence, the leadership, all of that was there. Those are intangible things,” Taylor said.

“And now it’s time to say, okay, we can’t sign him and just let him keep playing. Or we can sign him and motivate him. I think the players are happy for him.”

The Jaguars agreed to a five-year contract worth $275 million with the quarterback and former number one pick last Thursday, with $200 million guaranteed and $142 million fully guaranteed.

Lawrence’s contract earns him an average of $55 million per season, making him, along with Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, the highest-paid player in the NFL on an annual basis.

Since being drafted No. 1 in 2021, Lawrence has started 50 regular season games. Lawrence ranks fourth in franchise history with 11,770 passing yards and is fourth with 58 touchdown passes.

Since his signing, Lawrence has been voted team captain by his teammates in every year of his NFL career and was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2022 after catching 387 passes for 4,113 passing yards and 25 touchdowns with a passer rating of 95.2.

During the 2023 season, he completed 370 passes, becoming the only quarterback in franchise history to begin his career with three seasons of at least 300 completed passes and the second quarterback in team history to record at least 300 completed passes in three consecutive seasons. He was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week three times in his career, twice in 2022 (Weeks 3 and 12) and once in 2023 (Week 11).

In his career, Lawrence also recorded 205 rushing attempts for 964 yards and 11 touchdowns.

“There are people around the league that say, ‘Oh, wow, Jacksonville blew it,’ or they jumped the gun, or you know, if you look at his stats, he doesn’t deserve this contract. That’s what they said about Kirk Cousins,” Taylor said.

“I mean, he’s got to go out there and play. Right now he’s just got to go out there and play. He doesn’t have to think about money forever, you know, that’s the least of his thoughts right now until he retires. So we’ll see how it goes. I don’t know, we’ll see how it goes. But I’m glad Trevor is there, he can focus on his game. Hopefully we’ll see that big jump that we’re waiting for, you know, like some of these top guys and top five guys, and go from there.”