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We already know Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is the best player in the league, at least in 2019. His MVP award and numerous broken records confirm that as fact. But for all the talk about how great Jackson is with his legs, it’s his arm that rarely gets consideration.
Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire already pointed out that Jackson is one of the best deep-ball passers in the NFL. Once again, Farrar set the record straight about Jackson, naming him the best quarterback in the league without play action.
“Not that Jackson needed play-action last season to set defenses on edge; they were generally too worried about him taking off on the run and taking it to the house. But on non-play-action throws, no quarterback had a better passer rating than Jackson’s 111.6, which he constructed with 178 completions on 269 attempts for 2,112 yards, 25 touchdowns, and just six interceptions.”
These stats go against the grain of what many have said about Jackson, even after he won the MVP award last season. Even his supporters are likely shocked to hear that 67.5% of his passing yards and 69.4% of his passing touchdowns came on non-play-action throws last season.
While many pundits continue to critique Jackson’s style of play and his arm, the stats don’t lie and they point to Baltimore’s quarterback being far more polished than many would think. Just like the argument that Jackson takes too many hits, we continue to see people debate that Jackson would be nothing without a strong rushing attack to open things up. While it makes sense Jackson would be best when he is able to stymie a pass rush with good play action, the reality is he does just fine from within the pocket making traditional throws.
For those that question if Jackson can stay relevant in the NFL as a mobile quarterback, I implore you to go back and actually watch the games last season. Though Jackson was certainly electric on the run, he actually stuck inside the pocket far more than you’d probably guess and made solid throws with pressure in his face. As he continues to develop as a passer and mature as a quarterback, he should continue to improve in these area and get even better than what we saw last year. And if he’s already one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL right now, that’s a scary proposition for opposing defenses.
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