Trevor Lawrence on Jacksonville’s 1-2 start: ‘There’s no lack of belief’

Here’s what he had to say:

Opening statement: “Obviously, the last two weeks we haven’t played well, we know that and that’s just where we stand. We also know it’s a long season and we still (have) 14 more games left. Both of those things can be true and are true. That’s just where we’re at, and we understand that. We know the sense of urgency to play better and execute and do what we know we’re capable of, especially offensively. We have that, and the guys are ready to go, we got to go do it though. It’s little things. I think we’ve done some difficult things and made them look easy as far as protections, we’ve done some things that maybe aren’t easy. We’ve done those well, but it’s the simple things that we’re not executing on. The things that we know we can do that we’ve done in the past that we have to do to win, that’s what we’re not doing. It just takes a couple of plays here and there, it takes one week just to get back on track and start getting that confidence back going in the right direction. I’m looking forward to doing that this week. We’ve got a big week of prep before we travel over there (Thursday), so (Wednesday) and (Thursday) are crucial to our planning and just getting ready.”

On if he grew up watching”Toy Story:” “I did, I wouldn’t say I’m maybe the biggest ‘Toy Story’ fan, I like the movies, I just don’t know all the characters necessarily and all that. I’ve definitely watched all of them.”

On thoughts of being a “Toy Story” character on the ESPN-Plus broadcast: “I think it would cool and interesting. It will be cool for the kids, I think if I was a kid and they did that for a football game, it would be definitely entertaining and something I’d want to watch. I don’t know, do you guys know what character I’m supposed to be? Have they said that yet? It’s just me? Oh, OK. I’m just in Andy’s Room. I was hoping I might be Slink or something. That’s a pretty cool one. It’ll be on Disney-Plus after the game, not just live? I’ll probably watch it, turn it on. Just check it out and see how it goes.”

On his thoughts toward working through difficult third-down situations: “I trust our process and the way we prepare. It’s proven that it works. This year we’ve had some struggles, especially on third downs. Then, you talk about red zone against Kansas City. There’s been some struggles at times, I think it’s maybe more attention to detail and more emphasis on certain things, but I think that our process is right. I think we’re doing things the right way. The way we prepare, maybe it’s just more attention to detail and just playing loose. I think we have so much talent, and we’re an offense that has a lot of talent. We have the guys to be a great offense, but we have to go out there and do it and execute. I just think when those situations come up, just keep playing free, play like it’s a normal down. Nothing is different, it’s third down, but that shouldn’t change anything. I think that’s the emphasis, too, for all of us, it’s just go play. We’ve got great players; I’m going to find them. (Running back) Travis (Etienne) is going to do the right thing when he gets the ball, the line up front is going to match the guys and they’re going to do a great job. We have all the right people. It’s not to overthink it, I think one thing, too, is that losing magnifies everything, it always does. You can’t panic and throw everything out just because we’ve had some struggles. Some of the stuff is just simple stuff that we’ve executed the past two years, and maybe we just haven’t for a few games for whatever reason, maybe different reasons. But you can’t panic and throw everything away after three games. We know who we are, we know what our identity is, we know what we have to improve on and we need to improve on them. You can’t lose all sense of who you are after just a couple of games.”

On imagining playing a game in London for eight years like offensive lineman Tyler Shatley: “Yeah, I can’t imagine that. That’s a long time.”

On him staying in the league for a long time and seeing the record for most games played in London: “Yeah, we’re double-dipping this year, I got two of them. That’s crazy. Shat’s longevity has been cool to see, and he’s a good one.”

On if he has any concerns about playing two games in London and coming back for a home game directly after: “I haven’t even thought about it, to be honest. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. I honestly don’t know, I don’t know how it’s going to be. It doesn’t really mater. Either way, we’re going to have to play two games over there, come back and play again. That’s not going to change, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. We’ll do everything we can to stay fresh for these two games and then traveling back, I’m sure (coach Doug Pederson) will have a good set up for us.”

On if friends or family are coming to London because of the longer stay: “Yeah, it depends who you are. (His wife) Marissa actually came last year and there wasn’t much time, but she did her own thing. She’ll be out there this year, my parents are going to go and my little sister and my grandmother. We’ll have some people out there. They’re going for both games, so that’ll be cool. We won’t have a ton of time because we don’t have a ton of time when we’re here during the week on a home game anyways. That’s not going to change, our schedule is pretty similar. We’ll have a day to maybe explore and hang out, just get your mind off of it a little bit.”

On if he can see London on his player day off next week: “Yes, we’ll have that day to do what we want to do.”

On what he tells wide receiver Calvin Ridley to keep his mind in a good place: “I don’t think there’s too much to say, I think Calvin is a great player. He’s been a great player in his years past. I don’t see a concern with that, I’ve seen the way he works and how he’s been here. It’s just all of us, we’re all making mistakes at the wrong times, it’s not just him. He’s gotten the spotlight this week, but it’s not just him. All of us have to play better as well, but I think just continue to encourage him. He’s a guy that has a lot of confidence in himself, so he’s not going to get down on himself. We have all the confidence in him, he’s going to make those plays nine out of 10 times, it just happened Sunday. That was the one time. I’m not really concerned there, but definitely got to just keep talking to him and communicating. This is a new dynamic with me and him. We didn’t play together in the past like some of the other guys that are on the team, so that’s a continued progression of that relationship and things do get hard. Maybe right now he had a little bit of a rough week, maybe it’s later in the season when I’m not finding him and he’s playing good. There are things that are going to continue to happen that you have to work through. I don’t have any concern about him, he’s going to be just fine.”

On if he has a sense of urgency to play relaxed or if that’s what he’s always done: “I think you prepare, and this is the message for us this week, is that you should prepare and focus on all the little details as much as you possibly can throughout the week. In walk-throughs and practice and really challenge yourself. That’s the time when you can think a little bit and you want to see every look. It’s all right to make a mistake. That’s when you get better and see all the looks and you learn from it. So have that sense of urgency in practice of letting me get everything I can, get all the information, dial in on the game plan, know it like the back of my hand. So, when Sunday comes, you just go play. Of course, there’s going to be mistakes either way, no matter how well you prepare. There’s going to be some mistakes, but you can just go play free and play and not think. I think that’s the biggest thing, when you’re thinking more than you’re reaching, it’s hard to play. Especially at this level, it’s hard to play that way. I think that’s for all of us, myself included, it’s just to continue to challenge yourself to do that and prepare that way so when Sunday comes, you can let it go and not think. I think that’s the challenge for us this week and I’m excited to see how we all respond.”

On if he has confidence in the team after going through everything last season with them: “Definitely. There’s no sense of panic, I wouldn’t say guys aren’t concerned because that’s not the right word, but we care a lot about what we do so there is some concern when you don’t play well and you put a lot of work in. When you don’t play well the past two weeks, that’s obviously frustrating. There’s no panic, there’s all the belief. There’s all that there. Even last week, as bad as we played, sitting there at halftime down 17-0, we had no doubt we were going to win the game. Second half had some bad plays, and we weren’t able to overcome it, but there’s no lack of belief, and I think that’s one thing you can’t lose. You can’t ever lose that, and we definitely haven’t, so there’s no concern there.”

On if the change of scenery in London will benefit the team: “Yeah, I think it is good. I think we’re going to use that to our advantage and definitely in a positive way. I think maybe that’s something that could be good for us, to just get out of this environment. Let’s go over there and disconnect from what we know for a little bit and go take care of business. Come back with a new sense of energy and refresh and all that. I think we’re going to use it that way, if we weren’t going over there, I don’t think it’s something that we’d desperately need because if we’re here, you got games to play and you got your job to do as well. I wouldn’t say it that way, but we’re definitely going to use it as a positive for sure.”

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