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The Jacksonville Jaguars are reportedly optimistic that quarterback Trevor Lawrence's injury suffered during the team's 'Monday Night Football' loss isn't as bad as initially feared, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo report.
Lawrence, 24, is believed to have suffered an ankle sprain during the team's 34-31 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals and will undergo an MRI on Tuesday (December 5) for confirmation, Pelissero reported via NFL.com.
"There’s optimism Trevor Lawrence’s injury (an ankle sprain, as @TomPelissero first reported last night) isn’t bad and that’s a credit to the #Jaguars QB’s flexibility. Not the first time he’s been rolled and avoided serious injury. This was last year," Garafolo wrote on his X account Tuesday morning, along with a clip of Lawrence's injury from the 2022 season.
Lawrence didn't speak to reporters after the game and head coach Doug Pederson didn't have an update during his postgame press conference, but confirmed that the former No. 1 overall pick was set to undergo more tests on Tuesday. Lawrence suffered the injury with the game tied, 28-28, midway through the fourth quarter.
The quarterback appeared to be accidentally stepped on by offensive lineman Walker Little during his dropback, which led to him being bent backward while on the ground. Lawrence was seen attempting to walk off the field before dropping back to the ground, at which point he appeared to be visibly frustrated by the injury.
The 24-year-old was helped up by two Jaguars trainers and taken to the sidelines and then the tunnel for evaluation. NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe, who was present in Jacksonville's locker room after the game, noted that Lawrence was able to stand on his ankle but tried not to put pressure on it before putting his right ankle in a boot and walking on crutches.
"Trevor Lawrence in the locker room with teammates telling them about his ankle injury. A couple left him smiling after update and he seems in good spirits. Nothing wrapped on his right ankle and he’s standing on his own on that ankle. He does have crutches on ground for support," Wolfe wrote on his X account.
"Trevor Lawrence is now using his crutches and trainers just gave him a walking boot to put on his right ankle & exit the locker room. He was crutching around to talk with other teammates. He can stand on his ankle but clearly not trying to put a lot of pressure to walk on it," Wolfe added 10 minutes later.
Veteran backup C.J. Beathard took over at quarterback in Lawrence's absence, which included leading the Jaguars to a game-tying field goal drive to force overtime. Lawrence led the Jaguars to an 8-3 record entering Monday's (December 4) loss and has thrown for 3,004 yards, 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions on 271 of 399 passing, while also recording 248 yards and four touchdowns on 56 rushing attempts in 2023.