Lawrence to enter NFL draft
Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence has made it official — he's heading to the NFL.
Lawrence, the 6-foot-6 QB with the power arm and flowing hair, released a video on social media Wednesday announcing he was leaving school and declaring for the NFL draft.
“I really feel like I'm a man now and I'm ready to take on those challenges,” Lawrence said. “Super excited for life ahead. I'm grateful for Clemson and I'm going to miss it.”
Lawrence had said in September he planned to play his junior season, graduate in December and move on to the NFL. However, in October, Lawrence discussed keeping his options open, which included possibly returning for another year of college as discussions of the No. 1 pick intensified between the then winless New York Jets and the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Jaguars finished 1-15 and have the top pick in the draft and are expected to take Lawrence.
He finished 34-2 in his college career, leading Clemson to three Atlantic Coast Conference titles and the national title after the 2018 season. He finished second in the Heisman Trophy race Tuesday night to Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney had often called Lawrence the best player in college football, no matter who won awards.
“There will be a lot of people trying to live up to the standard that he set as a quarterback for a long time in this game,” Swinney said before the Tigers' 49-28 Sugar Bowl loss to Ohio State that ended their season a game short of the national title contest.
Lawrence was the epitome of cool and confident almost from the moment he arrived at Clemson in January 2018. It took four games as a freshman before he became the starting quarterback and never surrendered the position — except for two games this season he missed after testing positive for COVID-19.
Gailey out as Dolphins OC: Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Chan Gailey has resigned one season after coming out of retirement.
The announcement was made Wednesday, one day after Gailey's 69th birthday and one day after coach Brian Flores said he expected all of his assistant coaches would return in 2021. With Gailey calling plays, the Dolphins scored 404 points, their highest total since 1986. He had a major role in the development of rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who struggled at times but went 6-3 as a starter.
The Dolphins finished 10-6 with one of the NFL's youngest teams. A blowout loss Sunday at Buffalo kept them out of the playoffs.
Jets interview Chiefs OC Bieniemy:
The New York Jets kicked off their coaching search by interviewing Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy on Wednesday.
With six vacancies around the league, the 51-year-old Bieniemy is one of the most popular candidates after helping the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes win the Super Bowl last year and directing the NFL's No. 1 offense this season. Bieniemy also interviewed with Atlanta and Detroit earlier this week.
Teams are speaking to coaching and general manager candidates through virtual interviews rather than in-person visits in early round discussions because of the coronavirus pandemic.