Trevor Lawrence will miss Sunday’s game against the Vikings with shoulder injury: report

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Trevor Lawrence will miss the second start of his NFL career on Sunday with a shoulder injury, according to a report from NFL.com.

The injury calls into question his availability for the rest of what has been a difficult season for the Jaguars.

In Lawrence’s absence, Mac Jones will make his first start for his hometown team. Jones, who played at Bolles, was acquired in a trade with the Patriots in the offseason and will make his first start against the Vikings (6-2) at EverBank Stadium.

Jones, a first-round pick in 2021 in the same draft as Lawrence, has played in mop-up duty this year. He’s 6 of 9 passing for 28 yards in blowout losses against the Bears and Bills. Jones was 18-24 in three seasons with New England and completed 66.1% of his passes (45 TDs, 36 INTs).

With a season that feels like its lost, will the team push it with their franchise quarterback?

The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Thursday that Lawrence was weighing options for the future regarding his shoulder injury. The Jaguars are 2-7 and have less than a 5% chance of reaching the playoffs. Lawrence signed a five-year, $275 million contract extension last June that ties him to the Jaguars through 2030.

The Jaguars went 4-13 in Lawrence’s rookie season, a disaster all around during the brief tenure of Urban Meyer. Under Pederson in 2022, Lawrence figured things out and was one of the best quarterbacks in the league in the second half of that year. That included a torrid finish to win the AFC South title and one of the biggest comebacks in playoff history in a 31-30 win over the Chargers.

But Lawrence was uneven in 2023 and struggled through inconsistencies in the first four games this season before somewhat turning things around to win two of his next five starts. Lawrence has passed 2,004 yards and 11 touchdowns (six interceptions) this season. Jacksonville has lost five games this season by five points or less.

Lawrence suffered the injury to his left (nonthrowing) shoulder during a Week 9 loss to Eagles. He stayed in and finished the game, a 28-23 loss. Lawrence has been limited in practice this week. The Jaguars added some insurance when they signed former backup CJ Beathard to the practice squad on Wednesday.