Trevor Lawrence Says ‘There’s a Sense of Urgency’ for Jaguars to Make Super Bowl After Struggles This Season

“There's only one team that's happy at the end of the year, it just makes you want to work even harder to get that opportunity,” the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback tells PEOPLE

Trevor Lawrence was on the ground in Las Vegas ahead of the 2024 Super Bowl, but the trip came with mixed feelings after the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback and his team went from the top of their division to missing the playoffs over the the last month of the season. 

At the end of November, the Jaguars were 8-3 and at the top of the AFC South, but four straight losses, plus a final loss to the Tennessee Titans on Jan. 7, ended their season earlier than expected. 

“When the games matter the most, we didn't play our best, when the year before we were pretty good at that,” Lawrence, speaking on behalf of his partnership with Gatorade, tells PEOPLE. 

Going into their Week 9 bye week, the Jaguars were feeling good, but December brought a collapse. 

Related: Marissa Lawrence ‘Really Overwhelmed’ by Positive Messages for Husband Trevor Lawrence After Jags QB’s Injury

“The whole season we were really good until about halfway through the year and then we struggled,” Lawrence says. “All those things we are thinking about now, and especially the way the season ended, there's a sense of urgency for us and we know we need to get better and I think we have the right people to do that.”

And that tough season brings lessons for Lawrence and the Jaguars to build on next year, he says. 

“As a team, it opened our eyes a little bit on the things we need to improve on. We're excited to get back to work. I think that's the biggest thing, is to get back to work in OTAs [offseason workouts] and build a championship team one day at a time. It doesn't come overnight.”

Lawrence says that being at the Super Bowl gives him an added hunger to be one of those final two teams playing for the Lombardi trophy next year. 

“I wish I was playing,” he says. “That's why we play, is to win the Super Bowl. It’s where everybody wants to be and there's only one team that's happy at the end of the year. It just makes you want to work even harder to get that opportunity.”

Despite not being in Vegas to play, Lawrence did get to mix in some pleasure to the weekend. He hung out at Gatorade’s activation center, where people could come customize water bottles as part of the hydration brand’s new Gatorade ID membership platform, which he calls “pretty sweet.” 

The Clemson grad also got to hang out with old friends and teammates “that I don’t get to see all the time" who were also out in the desert for the game. And he enjoyed getting a glimpse at all the events ahead of the first-ever Super Bowl on the Strip. 

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“It's an awesome city for a Super Bowl,” he says. “It's crazy, but it's fun.”

Still, Lawrence was happy to head home to Jacksonville to watch the game on the couch with his wife Marissa and their dogs.

“Last thing I ever want to do is watch two other teams play” in the Super Bowl, he says, with a laugh. “So I can do that from the couch."

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