Vets praise Jaguars rookie WR after strong debut

It's not often that rookies have immediate impacts on their teams in Week 1, but that's exactly what Jaguars first-round pick Brian Thomas Jr. did.

While Jacksonville ended up falling short to the Miami Dolphins, 20-17, the rookie wide receiver reeled in four catches for 47 yards and his first career touchdown .

It's safe to say he has quickly earned the respect of fourth-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

"He's a gamer, and just shows up ready to play every time he goes out there," Lawrence said , via the team's official site. "That's exciting to see as a quarterback, just some of the plays he made. He doesn't seem like a rookie at all. He has that quiet confidence about him."

Many questioned whether Thomas would be a Day 1 contributor given the Jaguars' crowded wide receiver room that includes Christian Kirk, Gabe Davis, Devin Duvernay and Parker Washington, among others, but those beliefs were put to bed in Week 1.

Some veterans may not like the idea of younger players coming in and taking away their targets, but Kirk, who finished the game with just one catch for 30 yards, is not among those.

"As the season goes on, he'll be asked to do more," Kirk said. "For a young guy to go out there and make the plays he did, I thought he played with a very calm demeanor and also some energy. A lot of people, including us, loved to see him get a little emotional during the game. That was good. It kind of set the tone. Each week, he's going to keep getting better."

Praise for Thomas didn't stop at the wide receiver room, either. Tight end Evan Engram liked what he saw, too.

"I told him today: 'You might be a rookie. You might be quiet. But that energy you have on Sunday, the confidence we say come out of you, that's going to help our team. We see it. We feel it,'" Engram said. "Whatever he's been doing, he needs to keep doing it. He has a bright future ahead. It's only his first game. He's going to continue to learn. He's going to get better. He's going to get more accustomed to the game, to our offense. I can't wait to play alongside him the rest of the season and just watch him grow."

Having a strong debut will make future opposing defenses pay more attention to Thomas, but Lawrence believes that will only help Jacksonville's chances as it looks to rebound in Week 2 against the Cleveland Browns (0-1).

"Obviously they had a lot of respect for him," Lawrence added. "Moving forward, it sort of changes how you cover a guy like that the rest of the game when that happens early. That's only going to help us."