Tanking for Trevor? Gardner Minshew nearly perfect as Jaguars stun Colts
Forget tanking for Trevor.
The Jacksonville Jaguars looked set at quarterback on Sunday as they pulled off an opening-week stunner in a 27-20 win over the Indianapolis Colts. Last year’s rookie sensation Gardner Minshew was nearly perfect as the Jaguars upended a Colts team that entered the game as a touchdown favorite.
Minshew finished 19-of-20 passing for 173 yards and three touchdowns, including a 22-yard toss to Keelan Cole for the go-ahead score with 3:43 remaining.
Good company for Minshew
According to Pro Football Reference, Minshew’s effort is just the 12th since 1970 with with a 90 percent completion rate on 20 or more pass attempts.
He thoroughly outplayed his Colts counterpart Philip Rivers, who turned the ball over twice in his Indianapolis debut. Rivers threw a lot, tallying 363 yards on 36-of-46 passing. But he threw two interceptions to just one touchdown as Minshew’s efficient performance got the job done.
The Jaguars drafted Minshew out of Washington State last season, and he became one of the season’s biggest surprises after supplanting offseason acquisition Nick Foles at quarterback.
Jaguars expected to have eyes on Trevor Lawrence
He threw for 3,271 yards, 21 touchdowns and six interceptions in 12 starts that saw the Jaguars tally a 6-6 record after taking over with relatively low expectations. The Jaguars are expected to be one of the NFL’s worst teams this season with Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence anticipated as the NFL draft’s top prize next spring.
For now, Minshew doesn’t appear to have any intention of putting Jacksonville in position to draft his replacement.
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