2020 stats: 7 games | 65.9 pct | 1,855 pass yds | 6.9 ypa | 13 pass TD | 5 INT | 122 rush yds | 1 rush TD | 3 fumbles lost
Battling multiple fractures and a strained ligament in his throwing thumb, Minshew has arrived at a surprising crossroads in the middle of his second NFL season. As an undersized, late-round pick with more moxie than arm strength, he figures to spend his career staving off or leaning into QB competitions. A fair overview of his work to date, however, would concede that physical limitations did not appear to be a deal-breaker until the past few weeks — just as passes beyond 15 and 20 yards began to flutter and die in mid-air, ostensibly due to the pain and/or limited range of motion in his throwing thumb.
As it turns out, the Jaguars may have stumbled upon the draft’s late-round QB gem for the second straight year. Jake Luton, proud owner of a 28:3 TD-to-INT as a senior at Oregon State last season, is a candidate to leapfrog veteran backup Mike Glennon into the starting role for Week 9. After touting the sixth-round rookie’s prototypical size (6-foot-6, 224 pounds), football acumen and big, accurate arm in August, offensive coordinator Jay Gruden labeled Luton “the biggest pleasant surprise” of training camp. This is suddenly a fluid situation in Duval.
