After three seasons, the partnership between Doug Pederson and quarterback Trevor Lawrence has come to an end.
The Jaguars fired Pederson on Monday following the club’s finish 4-13 in 2024. After starting the 2023 season 8-3, Jacksonville went 5-18 over the rest of Pederson’s tenure, leading to his dismissal.
“I think it’s difficult to look at where we’re at now at the end of this season and take it for what it is,” Lawrence told reporters in his Thursday press conference. “Like, man, it was just such a rough year and tough in every regard, injuries not winning games. That’s just tough on a team, so I think as a player, you look at it and you understand that’s part of the business. But you’re also disappointed and you feel some responsibility because as a player, you have impact on the game.
“It’s on us as well, so I think you see it and it’s unfortunate, I guess is the best way to put it, just because you feel like you wish you could have done more, and you wish you would have won more games. … I think it’s a weird feeling, but you do understand it’s part of the business and you just have to continue to get better and for whatever reason this year we didn’t do that.”
Lawrence noted that while he’d probably like to see a young, offensive-minded coach come in, he knows there’s more to the choice than that.
“I think just as far as a leader, you want the right guy that’s going to be the right leader and voice for your team and set that culture and just to be a tough team, mentally, physically, that can withstand the ups and downs this season,” Lawrence said. “I think that was something that the last couple of years or two years ago, we did a great job of, but for whatever reason, this year, we weren’t able to do that. It’s hard to put a finger on sometimes why you’re not able to.
“But I think from a leader standpoint, whether it’s an offensive coach or a defensive coach, just the guy that’s going to instill that culture, that toughness into our team and just that confidence that it doesn’t matter who we’re playing, when we’re playing, just spot the ball and we can beat anybody — and just a tough team that other teams don’t want to play against.”
While Lawrence isn’t expecting to dictate who Jacksonville’s next coach will be, he noted that he’d like a proverbial seat at the table — and feels like he has one.
“My job is to prepare myself to play really well and to win games and be on the field, so I don’t want to ever cross any boundaries and try to do more than my job if that’s not wanted or needed,” Lawrence said. “I, of course, have opinions. I’ve been here now four years, I’ve had two coaches, I’ve seen good, bad, kind of everything in between, so I do have an opinion, and I think that Mr. [Shad] Khan and [G.M.] Trent [Baalke] really value my opinion, honestly.
“So, of course, we’ll have conversations and we’ve had conversations, but as far as, obviously, I’m not making the decision. I’m the quarterback here. I’m not the owner, I’m not the GM; I’m the quarterback. I know what my role is, but I also think that my opinion is important and I think that they value it. I don’t know if that answers your question, but that’s how I feel about it.”
