Trevor Lawrence picked up right where he left off, and the Jacksonville Jaguars opened their season by steamrolling the Cleveland Browns 34-10 on Sunday.
Lawrence was sharp from the start, throwing for 245 yards and four touchdowns while completing 18 of 23 passes. He finished with a career-high passer rating of 150.6, and Jacksonville scored on six of its first seven possessions in a game that never really felt close. The win came in front of 42,000 at EverBank Stadium and gave the Jaguars a clean, convincing start after a strong finish to 2025.
The scoring spread around quickly. Lawrence hit Parker Washington, rookie Josh Cameron, Brenton Strange and Jakobi Meyers for touchdowns, with three of the four targets wide open. Washington’s grab on the first touchdown was a diving catch, and the pending free agent flashed a “pay me” sign to the crowd after the play.
It was the kind of easy rhythm Jacksonville hoped to carry into this fall, especially with the team coming in as a popular pick to get back to the postseason and maybe make its first Super Bowl run. Lawrence, who was one of the league’s best quarterbacks down the stretch last season while helping the Jaguars win the AFC South, made the opener look routine against a Browns defense that had already been reshaped by the offseason trade of five-time All-Pro defensive end Myles Garrett and was working under new defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg.
Cleveland had its own problems, and they showed up immediately. Deshaun Watson, making his first start in nearly two years, threw an interception on the opening drive and nearly had another picked off on the Browns’ second possession. He later recovered his own fumble to keep that one from turning into another giveaway.
The Browns kept shooting themselves in the foot, too. Rookie receiver KC Concepcion Jr. fumbled, Cleveland was penalized 11 times for 75 yards, and the offense went just 1 for 8 on third down. Two trips inside the 20-yard line ended without a touchdown.
Cleveland managed 272 total yards and produced only two real highlights. Raheim Sanders ripped off a 74-yard kickoff return that helped set up a 26-yard field goal in the third quarter, and Watson found Denzel Boston for a 46-yard touchdown with 1:52 left.
There were also injuries on both sides. For Cleveland, RB Dylan Sampson was ruled out in the first half with a knee injury, and LG Zion Johnson left in the first half with a left knee injury before returning.
Jacksonville lost DE B.J. Green to an elbow injury at halftime, while WR Brian Thomas Jr. went to the locker room in the second quarter with a shoulder issue but returned for the final series of the first half.
One other notable return came up front for Jacksonville. Right tackle Cole Van Lanen started the opener just eight months after knee surgery, having torn a ligament in his right knee in the regular-season finale.
He missed most of training camp, sat out the preseason, and still made it back in time for the Browns. Van Lanen played the first half before handing things over to backup Walker Little.
The Browns head to Tampa Bay next Sunday. The Jaguars go to Denver next Sunday.
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The Jaguars opened their season the way teams hope to, mixing a balanced offense with a defense that never let Cleveland find a rhythm in a 34-10 win at EverBank Stadium. Jacksonville moved the ball well through the air and on the ground, while the defense forced multiple turnovers and kept steady pressure on the Browns quarterback, giving the home crowd plenty to feel good about early.
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Brian Thomas Jr. Shoulder Scare Just Put Jaguars Fans On Edge
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Thomas ultimately avoided a major injury and came away with three catches for 40 yards, but the shoulder will be something the Jaguars keep an eye on heading into Week 2. For a team trying to build momentum right away, any uncertainty around one of its most important young targets is worth monitoring closely. [Read more 🡒]