JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — An injury to Trevor Lawrence’s non-throwing shoulder prompted the Jacksonville Jaguars to bring back veteran backup C.J. Beathard.
The Jaguars (2-7) signed Beathard off Miami’s practice squad Wednesday to “give us assurance” in case Lawrence can’t play against Minnesota (6-2), coach Doug Pederson said.
Pederson said Lawrence will be limited in practice Wednesday. Mac Jones remains the backup, and Beathard is the third option. The trio spent the offseason together before Beathard injured his groin in the pre-season and was released.
“From our standpoint, we felt like we had a really good quarterback room with the three guys,” Pederson said. “C.J. got hurt there in camp and we had to let him go and all that, but we definitely wanted to at some point get him back here.
“I think it just strengthens our roster, strengthens that room. Trevor’s sore, obviously, and it gives us assurance.”
Lawrence took a hit to his shoulder while scrambling on a second-and-9 play in the second quarter at Philadelphia on Sunday. Instead of sliding, Lawrence chose to go head-first and got hammered by linebacker Zack Baun.
The top pick in the 2021 draft, Lawrence missed a game for the first time in his professional career in 2023 because of a sprained right shoulder sustained in Week 16. He also missed significant practice time because of other injuries: a sprained left knee in Week 6, a sprained right ankle in Week 13 and a concussion in Week 15.
The injuries played a part in the worst late-season collapse in franchise history. The Jaguars dropped five of their final six games last season and missed the post-season after spending three months atop the AFC South.
Nonetheless, the Jaguars signed Lawrence to a five-year, $275-million contract extension in June that made him one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in NFL history. Now, Lawrence has lost 12 of his last 14 starts.