For as long as he has been playing the quarterback position at a supremely high level, Lamar Jackson has faced questions about how he handles the rigors of the job. Despite the individual success that he enjoyed at Louisville, including securing a Heisman Trophy, Jackson had to wait until the end of the first round to hear his name called. Despite winning an MVP in 2019, Jackson entered this year with questions about whether the league had figured him out.
Yet after five weeks, you could make the case that Jackson is on track for a second MVP selection.
You probably remember all the criticism of his play, dating back to his days at college. Jackson was more of an “athlete” than a “quarterback.” He could not work through reads or progressions. He would not play from the pocket. He was not a natural thrower. These criticisms followed him every step of his draft journey, and despite coming from a Bobby Petrino offense rooted in progression reads, Jackson faced questions about how he would adapt to an NFL offense.
Then following the start to his career, and the MVP award in 2019, new questions were raised. Could he lead the Baltimore Ravens to a playoff win? Could he lead the Ravens back from a big deficit in a game, when the offense had to become one-dimensional?
Has the league figured him out?
As least through the first five weeks of the 2021 season, Jackson has answered these additional questions with his play. The Ravens and Jackson notched their first playoff win a season ago, winning on the road against the Tennessee Titans, the team that bounced them from the playoffs the year prior. So far this season, Jackson and the Ravens have erased two-score deficits on multiple occasions. Twice in their comeback win over the Kansas City Chiefs, where they erased an 11-point deficit on two separate occasions, and then Monday night when they stormed back from a 25-9 deficit against the Indianapolis Colts.
In the second half and overtime of that comeback, the Ravens had just four designed running plays. Everything else was on Jackson’s shoulders.
Of course, more questions will probably pop up regarding Jackson. They seem to always do. But in the meantime, let’s look at how Jackson has evolved his game this season, enabling him to yet again beat back the criticism that has followed him to the NFL from Louisville.