The Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence is growing his connection with wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. The duo recently had five completions for 49 yards, but it still remains a work in progress for both sides.
For the second-year WR, it seems like some mistakes he’s made have simply been a matter of mental error. On Sept. 28, Thomas nearly had a big catch in San Francisco territory, but couldn’t keep a second foot in bounds on a deep out.
Brian Thomas Jr.’s Slow Start With Jacksonville Due in Part to Mental Errors
Thomas’s start to his second year in the league could have gone better.
With the Jaguars, he was targeted 19 times in the first two games, but caught just five passes for 60 yards, including four for 49 yards in Jacksonville’s eventual 31-27 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2.
He dropped a potential touchdown pass in the end zone, had another pass bounce off his hand that got intercepted, and also dropped a fourth-down pass that would and should have set the Jaguars up with a first-and-goal inside Cincinnati’s five-yard line.
The previously mentioned connection between Lawrence and Thomas has also appeared out of sync at certain points.
Lawrence previously told ESPN that he and Thomas are working on being more of an asset to one another.
“Me and BT have a good relationship and we do communicate and that’s just something where I’ve got to be better for him and vice versa,” Lawrence said. “We’ve got to help each other out. There’s a couple plays [Sunday] where I can give him a chance down the field where I didn’t. I know there’s obviously a couple plays that he can make too. He would tell you the same thing so we’re all in it together.
“The beautiful thing about it is no one’s out there by themselves. So if he is putting pressure on himself, and I’m not saying he is, he’s not out there alone. He’s got 10 other guys that got his back and we’re all in that together. So that’s football. It’s not always going to go your way.”
On his career so far, Thomas has tallied 99 receptions across 165 targets for 10 touchdowns and 1446 total yards. Only 164 of these yards have been caught for this year.
The Jaguars previously selected Thomas out of LSU as the No. 23 overall pick. During his college years as a Tiger, the 6’2″ wideout often teamed with Malik Nabers to give LSU the most productive wide receiver tandem in college football in 2023.
Jacksonville currently has the 13th ranked offense according to PFSN’s Offense Impact metric, along with an overall grade of a C+.
Thomas and the Jaguars (now 3-1) turn their attention to facing off against the Kansas City Chiefs during Monday Night Football. Kick-off is slated for 8:15 p.m. EST.
