JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Jaguars waited more than four months to make the easiest and maybe most significant pick in franchise history.A sold-out draft party that included 8,000 fans celebrated wildly as NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell stepped to the podium and announced Lawrence’s name as the first pick in the draft Thursday night.
Lawrence is the fourth quarterback drafted by the franchise in the first round in its 27 years of existence, joining Byron Leftwich ,The chance to draft Lawrence was one of the factors that lured coach Urban Meyer out of the broadcast booth and got him back on the sideline. Jacksonville has five of the top 65 picks, including the 25th pick later in the opening round.
Meyer spoke to Clemson coach Dabo Swinney, who initially had four words for his former college coaching colleague.″“This will be a very easy transition” for Lawrence, Swinney added. “What he’s stepping into, the expectations, all those things, that his normal. And it has been for a long time. He’s built the right way. ... He’s the epitome of consistency. And if you know anything about Urban Meyer, he values consistency and toughness. I didn’t have to sell him on his toughness.
He finished second in Heisman Trophy balloting to Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith last season. Lawrence threw for 3,153 yards, 24 touchdowns and five interceptions while missing two games after testing positive for COVID-19 in October.
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