Can’t-miss games on the 2024 NFL schedule
USA TODAY Sports’ Mackenzie Salmon highlights a few must-see games on the 2024 NFL schedule.
Sports Seriously
The Jacksonville Jaguars might have missed the playoffs last season, but they are doubling down on their franchise quarterback.
The Jaguars and quarterback Trevor Lawrence have agreed to terms on a five–year, $275 million contract extension — with $200 million guaranteed — ahead of the 2024 season, a person close to the situation informed USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they aren’t authorized to discuss the extension. The new deal matches Lawrence with the Cincinnati Bengals‘ Joe Burrow as the NFL’s highest-paid quarterback and highest-paid player in league history (in per-season average salary).
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Lawrence is the sixth quarterback in the league to make over $50 million a season, joining Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow ($55 million), Detroit Lions’ Jared Goff ($53 million), Los Angeles Chargers’ Justin Herbert ($52.5 million), Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson ($52 million) and Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Hurts ($51 million).
Lawrence, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2021 NFL draft, has lived up to expectations. He earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2022 and that season led the Jaguars to a playoff victory against the Chargers in the wild-card round after overcoming a 27-point deficit, which marks the fifth-largest comeback in NFL history. Last season, Lawrence completed 65.6% of his passes for 4,016 yards, 21 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, but the Jaguars dropped six of their last nine games as Lawrence struggled with injury and missed the playoffs.
Lawrence said last year was a “disappointing season,” but noted that “my best ball is definitely ahead of me.” The 24-year-old previously opened up about a potential contract extension and said it “would be nice to have that done” in the offseason.
“I’d love to, obviously, be a Jag for as long as possible,” Lawrence said in April. “We love it here and I love where we’re headed as an organization and feel like I’m just getting better every year. My best ball is definitely ahead of me. So, from that standpoint, obviously, yeah, that would be great.”
Lawrence continued: “It’s going into my fourth year, it’s not like this is necessarily going to be my last season. There’s a lot that could happen. So, not really my focus right now. At the end of the day, my job isn’t going to change whether I get extended or not before this season. My job is to go win games and to be the best I can be for this team so we can have a chance to win a Super Bowl. Even if I get the contract extension, that’s still my job.”
The Jaguars are one of 12 NFL teams that have never won a Super Bowl.