Jags, Lawrence talking extension; ‘not my focus’

Michael DiRocco, ESPN Staff WriterApr 16, 2024, 03:44 PM ET
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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said he’s had preliminary discussions with the team about a potential contract extension but isn’t spending any time worrying about what that could look like.

“There’s definitely been some conversations,” Lawrence said Tuesday. “As far as where that’s at now, it’s not really my focus. I’d love to obviously be a Jag for as long as possible. We love it here, and I love where we’re headed as an organization.

“I feel like I’m just getting better every year and my best ball’s definitely ahead of me.”

NFL rules allow Lawrence to sign an extension after his third season. He signed a fully guaranteed fourth-year contract worth $36,793,592 after the Jaguars selected him first overall in 2021. The team has until May 2 to exercise the fifth-year option, which would pay Lawrence $25.664 million fully guaranteed in 2025, per OverTheCap.com.

Lawrence’s base salary in 2024 is $1.055 million.

Four quarterbacks currently make more than $50 million annually: Cincinnati‘s Joe Burrow ($55 million), the Los Angeles Chargers‘ Justin Herbert ($52.5 million), Baltimore‘s Lamar Jackson ($52 million) and Philadelphia‘s Jalen Hurts ($51 million).

Kansas City‘s Patrick Mahomes, who just won his third Super Bowl, is the next highest-paid quarterback at $46.339 million annually.

Lawrence’s potential contract could fall anywhere in that range.

“My job isn’t going to change whether I get extended or not before this season,” Lawrence said. “My job is to go win games and to be the best I can be for this team so we can have a chance to win a Super Bowl. Even if I get the contract extension, that’s still my job even more so. So for me, I have the same focus and the same mindset.

“I can’t lie. Obviously it would be nice to have that done and feel good about it, but, no, it’s not really the focus right now. I know where we’re at, I know where we’re heading and I know what I have to do and there’s some improvements that I have to make going forward.”

Lawrence is already fourth all time in Jaguars history in passing yards (11,770) and passing touchdowns (58). In 2022, he led the Jaguars to the AFC South title and a wild-card victory before losing to the Chiefs in a divisional playoff.

He led the Jaguars to an 8-3 start in 2023, but Lawrence had a concussion and ankle and shoulder injuries in the second half of the season and the team went 1-5 down the stretch and missed the playoffs.