The 2021 NFL Draft saw plenty of quarterbacks going to teams that year.
Of the group of second-year quarterbacks, five are clear starters for the 2022 season.
One more quarterback, Trey Lance, could be a starter for 2022 as well, depending on what the San Francisco 49ers do.
However, of these quarterbacks, only two are facing the most pressure to win in 2022.
So who are those quarterbacks and why are they under so much pressure this season?
2. Trevor Lawrence
The Jacksonville Jaguars have hit rock bottom the last two seasons in the NFL.
Their back-to-back last place finish in the NFL standings has hurt the team.
However, they are hoping Trevor Lawrence can turn things around after a disappointing first year with the team.
But that failure in his first season could be blamed on the horrible coaching situation in Jacksonville that season.
Urban Meyer was a complete train wreck as a coach, dragging down the team and its players.
Anybody forget Urban Meyer? They haven’t even put the flames out on that train wreck.
— james taylor (@staubyjackson) July 13, 2022
Now, the team has a former Super Bowl winning coach in Doug Pederson at the helm of things.
With him taking over in Jacksonville, the pressure in on Lawrence to improve on everything from 2021.
While it might seem impossible, with the damage Meyer caused, he must show that he’s as good as he was at Clemson.
If he can’t show what made him so good at Clemson here in Jacksonville, the pressure might break him.
However, he at least has a coach he can count on and some weapons on offense.
Improvements with the offensive line and the signing of Christian Kirk should help Lawrence this season.
But he won’t turn the team into playoff contenders overnight.
It will take time, but at least things are going in the right direction for him.
1. Mac Jones
The reason New England Patriots quarterback Mac Jones is under pressure isn’t for the reasons you would think.
He’s not in any jeopardy of losing his job or getting benched during the season.
However, some concerning play by him at the end of the 2021 season could put pressure on him.
That pressure comes from him doing better in games against teams he should easily beat.
His meltdown early against the Indianapolis Colts would cost the team a chance of getting a higher seed in the NFL playoffs.
One problem with your take so far: While Mac Jones’ poor play in the first half was a big contributor I don’t think he missed the block on the punt TD or jumped off-sides giving the Colts another FG try after the first one missed. There’s 10 points and they lost by 10. Just sayin
— Billy C says Biden has $$$ for war,0 for Med4All (@billclifton5) December 19, 2021
While he finished out that game strong, that poor first half didn’t help the Patriots.
He also couldn’t defeat the Buffalo Bills in their second game of the regular season, preventing them from winning the AFC East.
That game saw him pass for 145 yards, zero touchdowns, and two interceptions.
His turnovers would cost the team in a game their defense would try to hold back the hot Bills offense.
With head coach Bill Belichick being someone who hates losing, Jones will have pressure on him to win games in 2022.
The pressure is on because of the improvements both the Miami Dolphins and Bills made this offseason.
With them hungry to win the AFC East, Jones has pressure on him to stop them and keep New England in the playoffs.
