Trevor Lawrence hasn’t forgotten what you said, haters

Like Ryan Howard from The Office, Trevor Lawrence was taking notes. The Jacksonville Jaguars’ second-year quarterback knows what people were saying about him not too long ago.

“I have a little bit more of a chip on my shoulder now,” Lawrence said Wednesday. “Just because in the last year and a half, I don’t really forget what’s been said and what people have written. And now I see people change their mind after a couple of weeks, but I remember everything.”

Lawrence, 23, finished his rookie season last year with an NFL-leading 17 interceptions. And after a strong start to the 2022 season, he had a rough month of October with only four touchdowns to go with five interceptions over a stretch of five straight losses.

By the time Halloween rolled around, the takes were coming in hot.

Then a switch flipped. In his last five games, Lawrence has completed 71.8 percent of his passes with 10 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a stellar 111.7 passer rating.

His latest performance — a four-touchdown dissection of the Tennessee Titans — earned him AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. At the end of the game, he waved goodbye to Titans fans as they made a disappointed exit out of Nissan Stadium.

“That competitive spirit, it’s definitely come out more this season than last year,” Lawrence said. “I think just this point where we’re at in the season, these games are huge for us, and just having that edge, that intensity, being passionate about what we’re doing.”

Through 13 games, Lawrence appears headed for a stat line at the end of the year that’ll have a strong argument as the best season ever for a Jaguars quarterback. He’s well on pace to post the third 4,000-yard season in team history and the second most touchdown passes. Blake Bortles broke both of those records in 2015, but also threw 18 interceptions and finished the year with an 88.2 passer rating.

The future appears supremely bright for Lawrence, who is quickly turning into the generational quarterback he was touted to be in 2021.