When Trevor Lawrence pounded his fist into the turf Monday night, Duval braced for the worst. Fortunately, the Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback avoided a severe injury, suffering a high-ankle sprain.
Less than 48 hours later, Lawrence met the media on Wednesday without a walking boot and said he felt "a lot better" than he'd thought, given the immediate pain.
"I'm thankful it's not a worse injury than what I thought on the field," Lawrence said.
The star QB won't practice on Wednesday. It's unclear at this stage whether Lawrence will be available for Sunday's game against the Cleveland Browns. Head coach Doug Pederson said the club won't sacrifice the health of its players for one game.
"We have to weather this storm, so to speak," Pederson said.
Lawrence reiterated the coach's comments that he'd "never put myself or the team at higher risk that we aren't going to do our best because I can't do my job."
The QB, who played through injury last season, said he will lean on the medical staff to decide the risk/reward of playing Sunday.
"If I can be out there and be myself for the most part, then I'm going to be out there," he said.
Lawrence sustained the injury in the fourth quarter of Monday's eventual overtime loss to Cincinnati. The QB had his leg stepped on by offensive lineman Walker Little during a dropback and was then bent backward awkwardly while on the ground.
"It's a freak thing. If I'm 6 inches to the left or right, it doesn't happen," Lawrence said of the injury.
The Jags QB attempted to walk off the field but dropped back to the turf. He required help from two trainers to return to the sidelines and into the tunnel for evaluation.
As Lawrence slowly walked up the tunnel with aid, many wondered why he wasn't carted off the field, spawning "CartGate" questions. The QB said Wednesday it was his choice to eschew transportation.
"We talked about getting a cart, and I was going to get a cart, and then I'm standing there," he said. "I'm already on the sideline at that point, the tunnel is right there -- I just wanted to get off the field and get out of there -- I didn't know what was going on with my ankle, and I felt like I could get off. I was like, 'Hey, you're good. Just don't bring it out -- I'm going in.' Once I got in there, I'm like, 'This is a pretty long walk.' I was already there, and they asked again if I wanted a cart, and I'm like, 'No -- we were going to make it the whole way there.' Didn't know there was cameras in the tunnel, so that's kind of everywhere.
"Of course we have carts, and we have everything we need, and I was the one that didn't choose to take one. So, put that on me. Maybe that was dumb. Maybe I should've taken one. Whatever. But it's nothing to do with us not having a cart available. I don't think that would happen in the National Football League, especially here with the crew that we have."
