All anyone wants to talk about these days is quarterbacks and, more specifically, their contracts. Daniel Jones and Geno Smith both just got paid, and Lamar Jackson is currently scouring the NFL for what could be a market-setting deal. While those three have garnered most of the headlines in that regard, we're also in an offseason where Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, and Jalen Hurts are all eligible for extensions as well.
But let's go even further beyond those looming deals into next offseason. It's at that juncture when 2021 No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence is eligible for an extension. While you may think that's too far down the road to even start entertaining, best believe the Jaguars are getting their affairs in order for what will likely be another monster contract in the NFL.
"We know what the future holds," head coach Doug Pederson told The Athletic of a future Lawrence deal. "But it's also been proven in the NFL that you can pay your quarterback and still keep a pretty good roster around your quarterback. It's been done. We've got to be able to look at those models, too. I guess the beauty, too, is we've got the majority of our guys in long-term deals, so that will also help us when we get ready to redo Trevor in a year or so.
"I kind of let (general manager) Trent (Baalke) and (director of roster management) Trip (MacCracken) handle that and all the powers that be over on that side of the equation. My job is to get our team ready right now with the guys we have. We'll cross that bridge a year from now."
Lawrence endured a tumultuous rookie year under then-head coach Urban Meyer but started to look like the generational talent that he was billed to be coming out of Clemson upon the arrival of Pederson in 2022. With another year in his system and Jacksonville continuing to add pieces to the offense (like recently reinstated wideout Calvin Ridley), that will put Lawrence in a position to continue to ascend in Year 3.
"He's constantly wanting to get better," Pederson said. "He's constantly wanting to learn. He's wanting to grow. He puts in the time. That's what great quarterbacks do in this league, and he's just getting started."
Lawrence was already able to help bring the Jags to the playoffs last year and helped mount a come-from-behind win to advance to the divisional round. If he can bring them even further next season while talking the Year 3 leap that most expect out of him, he'll be situating himself for a lucrative contract that exceeds the $40 million in AAV that Daniel Jones just secured from New York.