Trevor Lawrence not a generational talent, anonymous NFL coaches say

Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence is about to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, but a few anonymous NFL sources aren’t impressed.

NFL.com analyst Tom Pelissero released his annual feature of anonymous NFL executives, scouts and coaches breaking down the current quarterback class.

While the NFL world has been gushing over Trevor Lawrence since he was in high school, several sources in the league weren’t convinced that he is as good as the hype might indicate.

"“Trevor Lawrence is a really good player,” an NFC coordinator told Pelissero. “I don’t know if he’s a generational talent like people are saying.”"

Another AFC coach said that if he were selecting between Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence that the pick would be obvious “100 times out of 100.”

"“If you didn’t take him and you’re Jacksonville, and it turned out that he was a perennial Pro Bowler, then you’ll never live it down,” the coach said. “They have to take him. I think the intangibles are there. He can throw the ball. But he does not have unique, rare playmaking ability. If I’m comparing last year to this year, Joe Burrow (who was drafted first overall by the Bengals) is picked over Trevor Lawrence 100 times out of 100.”"

Of course not everyone in the ‘anonymous scouting department’ were skeptics of Lawrence.

"“There’s just over-scouting that goes on in our league — like a guy’s got to have holes or something,” a college scouting director said. “I go back to when [Lawrence] was a freshman — if he could enter the draft [then], he would’ve been the first pick to me after his freshman year. What is giving people pause are probably the two (college football playoff) games he lost, the one to Burrow (and LSU, in the title game) and the one to (Justin) Fields (and Ohio State, in a semifinal game) where he wasn’t at his best, to be straight about it. But he’s so good and talented and athletic. C’mon. That guy can win you Super Bowls.”"

One AFC quarterbacks coach said he would take BYU’s Zach Wilson over Trevor Lawrence

There has been this sentiment from several analysts- led by Chris Simms- and now we hear it from a supposed quarterbacks coach.

"“If I was picking No. 1 — hoo, man, it’d be hard for me not to take him over Trevor,” an AFC quarterbacks coach said. “He’s got real playmaking ability. He’s shorter (than Lawrence) — I get it. But he’s got ball all about him. He makes plays — unique plays.”"

Of course, that coach should point out that Wilson hasn’t played in big games and likely the biggest game of his career was against Coastal Carolina. That’s not quite the prestige that Lawrence brings to the table, winning three ACC Championships and playing in five CFB Playoff games.

In the end, this all comes down to over scouting more than anything else.

People have had Trevor Lawrence under the microscope since he was a sophomore in high school looking for flaws. They’ve taken every facet of his game and broken it down forwards and backwards looking for those things to discredit him. Honestly, he’s been scouted and evaluated more than any prospect in recent history, and possibly ever.

We should also point out this fact: It’s easy for anonymous coaches to discredit Lawrence now when they know they’re not getting him.

Under the cloak of anonymity, you’ll hear coaches mention flaws for all kinds of players- even some of the top in the league. There’s always going to be that sense of ‘discredit him because he’s not our guy’ and ‘push this other QB because he is our guy.’

The whole discussion is a moot conversation because we all know what’s going to happen when the Jacksonville Jaguars are on the clock and I can guarantee you this: If any of these coaches were to somehow switch with the Jags, their tune would change in a hurry.