In beating the Jets on Thursday, the Jaguars did something the franchise hadn't done in more than 20 years. Dec 22, 2022; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence (16) reacts after the game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Trevor Lawrence is using this off-season time to do more than just improve physically. He’s working on using the 2022 season as a floor to improve off of.

His sophomore campaign had him lifting the Jacksonville Jaguars to a 9-8 record and, for the first time since 2017, an AFC South championship record and a trip to the AFC Divisional Round.

He’s just getting started after finishing the season with 4,113 passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions.

“I think we can’t really focus on the expectations,” Lawrence said in a press conference on Wednesday. “Obviously, you’re doing something right when the expectations raise for your team. That’s just a by-product of the success we had last year, but still, last year didn’t end the way we wanted it to.”

He matured beyond his years also. His game-calling, prep work and ability to make decisions quickly showed.

“Obviously, it was a good year for our team, for this city, for this organization, but there’s more out there, and I think we’ve set a new standard of who we’re going to be, the team we’re going to be,” Lawrence added. “We’ve got to start that way this year. That’s the mindset I think. We don’t really think about those expectations much because all we can do is try to keep getting better, and we know, for us, that’s the floor.”

He also said while doing some of that prep work, watching tape — he’s not concentrating on the plays necessarily. Those could change, and with a new roster — it would be time-consuming. Lawrence was looking at his own mechanics.

The addition of Calvin Ridley to add to Lawrence’s passing game changes some of those routes. Ridley has already confessed his admiration for his quarterback.

“We know what we’re capable of, and we’ve added more talent, and the sky is the limit for us. But we’ve got to get better every week, and we’ve got to focus on what is right in front of us,” Lawrence said. “You can’t talk about winning the Super Bowl right now. You’ve got to look at getting better this week and keep stacking those for four or five months, and when the season comes, that’s how you put yourself in the best situation to be your best every week and just keep getting better.”

[Demetrius Harvey]

About Jessica Kleinschmidt

Jess is a baseball fan with Reno, Nev. roots residing in the Bay Area. She is the host of "Short and to the Point" and is also a broadcaster with the Oakland A's Radio Network. She previously worked for MLB.com and NBC Sports Bay Area.