NFL Notes: Trevor Lawrence, Jets, Patriots

Trevor Lawrence

• Per Pete Iacobelli of the Associated Press, Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence acknowledged that he had been planning to declare for the draft as the presumptive No. 1 overall pick in 2021 but added he has not made a final decision: “My mindset has been that I’m going to move on. But who knows? There’s a lot of things that could happen.”
• Lawrence technically has another year of eligibility and could choose to prolong his college career like other highly-regarded QB prospects have in the past. 

Jets

The Jets aren’t even at the halfway point of the season and already it seems more likely than not that both HC Adam Gase and QB Sam Darnold will be gone in 2021. Both men are also well aware of the narrative, which made Sunday’s 18-10 loss even harder on Darnold. 

“I just keep thinking he’s 23. None of this can be easy,” Gase said via Al Iannazone of Newsday. “My thing to him was we got to stay the course, we got to keep finding ways to get better, we have to do a really good job of being great leaders and showing guys the right way to do things, and keeping our focus. Him and myself getting frustrated and angry to the point where it’s unproductive is not going to work. We have to do things right. We have to show the right way. We have to act a certain way where we can bring guys along with us and find a way to turn the corner.”

• The Athletic’s Connor Hughes disputes the report that the Jets are shopping 2019 first-round DL Quinnen Williams in a trade, though he says anything is possible if the team gets a godfather offer. 
• SNY’s Ralph Vacchiano also says his sources say the team isn’t shopping Williams. He does acknowledge the Jets have taken calls from other teams and while a trade is unlikely it isn’t impossible with an overwhelming offer. 

Patriots

• Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer notes the Patriots have already discussed potentially trading CB Stephon Gilmore twice with other teams this year, so he could come up again at the deadline or in the coming offseason. 
• Breer adds odds are Gilmore will not be on the team in 2021 because he’ll be too expensive. If New England decides it’s not competing this year and to go ahead and trade Gilmore, Breer adds the best the team could hope for would be a second or third-round pick given the veteran corner’s age. 
• Patriots HC Bill Belichick said he doesn’t think QB Cam Newton‘s struggles are due to any after-effects of COVID-19: “We’d list him on the injury report if he was, but I don’t think he’s had symptoms the whole way.” (Ben Volin)