JACKSONVILLE – Let's get to it …
Mike from Atlanta, GA
I've been thinking. If we think that wide receiver DJ Chark Jr. and Laviska Shenault Jr. will both have 1,000 yards receiving this season, and wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. could have 800-to-1,000 yards, and we think that running backs Travis Etienne Jr. and James Robinson will combine for 1,000 yards (with Etienne getting most of it), then that would mean quarterback Trevor Lawrence would throw for close to 4,000 yards. Does this seem possible now that we've seen Lawrence throw the ball to these guys a little?
Wow, you have been thinking – but while we didn't see enough to draw too many conclusions from Lawrence and the receivers during the Jaguars' 2021 offseason program, your projections are nonetheless realistic. It's very possible that Chark/Shenault/Jones could combine for close to 3,000 yards receiving, and Etienne/Robinson are dynamic enough receivers/runners that they could reach 1,000 yards – give or take a few yards. But your question seems to imply it would be a little surprising for Lawrence to throw for more than 4,000 yards as a rookie. Such a number isn't unreasonable at all; to do so would mean averaging about 235 yards per game passing. If Lawrence remains healthy, it would be surprising if he wasn't somewhere around that number – and perhaps a little above. Remember: Numbers won't be the end-all for judging Lawrence's performance as a rookie – and I imagine the Jaguars ideally would like to run well enough that Lawrence wouldn't have to be at 235 yards per game for the offense to be working. Either way, something around those numbers make sense and should be attainable if all goes as planned.
JR from The Squatchlands
Getting banned from the Olympics for smoking a little weed? Come on. It's 2021. When will the sports world wake up and realize this isn't the crime it was perceived to be decades ago? After all, it isn't exactly "performance enhancing."
Sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson indeed is expected to be unable to run the 100-meter dash at the Olympics in Tokyo later this month after a failed marijuana test. I agree that it seems silly on one level for the Olympics to ban marijuana use – just as it seems silly for marijuana to be illegal or grounds for dismissal from the workplace. But in this case, marijuana is on the World Anti-Doping Agency's list of banned substances – in part because the WADA says "cannabis can be performance-enhancing for some athletes and sports discipline." It's a shame that Richardson won't compete. She was to be a huge storyline for in the Olympics and will miss a career-defining opportunity. At the same time, it is a clear and well-known rule. So in this case, this does seem to be an avoidable – albeit regrettable and unfortunate – situation.
Big on Blake from Philly
Zone, I always understood Sbarro, because it's delicious. But Taco Bell?! Now we're talking. What's better than a Nacho Cheese Chicken Chalupa? Nothing. This forum is a Crunchwrap supreme. Good to go.
I can't talk right now. I'm heading to Subway for a five-dollar foot long.
Scott from Jacksonville
Do Taco Bell and Sbarro give you free food? If not, they should.
If they did, I never would eat anywhere else.
Jeff from Orange, CA
If Lawrence is Top 5 or 10 in quarterback rushing yards by season's end, do you think that equates to good use of his mobility, a rookie quarterback who leaves the pocket too early, or potentially both?
This depends on how Lawrence is running and how the Jaguars are trying to use him. I anticipate they will try to have him run enough – say, a few times per game – that defenses have to acknowledge it's a possibility, and I expect the idea will be to run him in situations where he can protect himself and not take awkward hits. He's a talented enough runner that such an approach makes sense. The danger with rookie quarterbacks, though, is that they often leave the pocket too early, or force running from the pocket as a way of compensating for not seeing field. That's not what you want to see from Lawrence for a couple of reasons – one being that it exposes the young player to injury, and wear and tear; two being that it means the quarterback isn't going though progressions, which is something he preferably will do sooner rather than later.
Sean from Jacksonville
It's past time for my dead-zone hibernation. Can I get a wake-up call, please?
No. Set your iPhone alarm like everyone else.
Steve from Nashville, TN
At 6-feet-6 and 213 pounds, Trevor Lawrence does not seem to have enough weight spread over that frame to survive a 17-game season, do you believe Trevor will weigh in heavier than that at the start of camp?
I do believe the Jaguars over time will work with Lawrence to add 10-to-15 pounds of good weight. I expect some movement toward that by '21 training camp, though I don't particularly expect him to be significantly heavier enough to allay your fears. Some of this also will come naturally with time. Players often enter the NFL a bit lighter than ideal and add good weight during the first few seasons of their career.
Ed from Ponte Vedra, FL
I'm treating last season as it never happened. Between Covid, empty stadiums and a 1-15 record, I'm whiting out 2020 from my records. Best to you in the upcoming season.
OK. Thanks. The Jaguars might do the same – except for the part about getting in position to draft Lawrence, of course.
Nick from Virginia Beach, VA
What is your favorite quote by an athlete?
Perhaps my favorite quote from an athlete came from the late tennis star Vitas Gerulaitis, who once lost 16 consecutive matches to Jimmy Connors. Upon beating Connors at the Tennis Masters Cup in January 1980, Gerulaitis said: "And let that be a lesson to you all. Nobody beats Vitas Gerulaitis 17 times in a row."
Sprinkle from Duval
Brozone, here's a Dead Zone question. I want to be ready for Trevor when I see him at Walmart. Top 5 food places in Jax: 13 Gypsies, French Pantry, Angie's Subs, Bearded Pig, Corner Taco. And maybe I'll mention European Street. What say you? And dude: you can't mention Sbarro or Taco Bell. If you haven't been to these places, TELL me you'll go. Also, I'm anticipating Trevor having a sandwich named after him at Angie's. What should it be?
Strings, Strings, Strings, Strings and Strings. I live in Springfield. Why would I drive to lesser establishments when I can walk to the best? Silkie's in Springfield is good, too. And when the missus and I are feeling bold and beautiful, we'll venture over to European Street in San Marco and the Stout Snug in Murray Hill. We got really enterprising a few weeks back and made it to the beach. We got the oysters at Slider's and got back downtown where we belonged.
David from The Island
Futbol has kinda grown on me. Especially the World Cup. I would like to enjoy the game more, but the flopping and faux pain is too much. You ever yell at the TV and tell the guys rolling around on the ground to just grow a pair?
It has been a while since I did this.
Scott from Jacksonville
I know the saying that when you assume, you make an ass of u and me. But what the hell was that?
Hard to say.
Doug from Jacksonville
John, a long time ago, I, too, had a streak. I was training for a long Triathlon and decided I would run a minimum of three miles a day for at least a year. I was running 60-to-70 miles a week, so I thought it would be easy. My long triathlon came about 320 days after I started the streak. The day after the event (12 hours of swimming, biking and running) I did my three-mile run early in the morning. The next day, however, I could hardly walk. I waited until 11 that night, left the hotel and walked, crawled and jogged until one a.m. I counted it as three miles for Monday and three miles for Tuesday. I got up to about 400 days and decided to break the streak on purpose. I am totally impressed with your streak. I know how difficult it is to do something every day no matter how you feel, what's going on, who's around and where you are. I hope you keep the streak for as long as you want and then just break it. We all appreciate what you do and when it's time to break it, I think you'll know and feel good about doing it.
This is on me. I thought your first line ended with "I, too, had a steak." It threw me off and I really didn't get the rest of your question.
