2021 NFL preseason, Week 3: What we learned from Sunday's games - NFL.com

NFL.com breaks down what you need to know from Week 3 of the 2021 NFL preseason. Catch up on each game's biggest takeaways using the links below:

Jacksonville Jaguars

2021 · 1-2-0

34-14

Dallas Cowboys

2021 · 0-4-0

Nick Shook's takeaways:

1. Trevor Lawrence is the real deal. Lawrence compiled his best performance of the preseason Sunday, looking every bit like the No. 1 overall pick in leading two touchdown drives. His second scoring march was his most impressive, as he connected with Laviska Shenault Jr. on a trio of completions, with the final -- a perfectly placed pass to Shenault on a corner route -- going for a touchdown. Lawrence was red hot, repeatedly delivering passes on time and on target while working with a slight advantage of having some of Jacksonville's starters at his disposal. After trading Gardner Minshew to Philadelphia, Jacksonville took its first step forward with Lawrence in charge Sunday. The rookie delivered and appears ready to embark on his first professional season.
2. The Cowboys' backup quarterback battle remains murky. Cooper Rush started the game with a chance to take a firm hold on the No. 2 spot on Dallas' depth chart, but with the Cowboys trotting out their second-stringers against a Jacksonville defense mostly filled by starters, it was an uphill battle from the start. Rush did little to impress, completing just 4 of 8 passes for 16 yards and failing to move the offense before handing the keys to his competition, Garrett Gilbert, who had an easier go as Jacksonville replaced starters with backups. With this considered, we really didn't learn much at all about how Dallas might proceed at the position, even after Gilbert led a nice touchdown drive that included a fourth-down conversion and a well-timed touchdown pass to Aaron Parker. It'll be interesting to see how this situation plays out as the Cowboys trim their roster to 53 by the Tuesday deadline.

NFL Research: Trevor Lawrence is the first rookie, and only the third player, since 2017 to record at least 130 pass yards and two pass TDs on 12 or fewer attempts in a preseason game.

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2021 NFL preseason, Week 3: What we learned from Sunday's games - NFL.com
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