It was all there.
Everything Lamar Jackson is doing right now to shred NFL defenses on a weekly basis, it was all there at Louisville.
The intelligence, the arm talent, the ability to adjust release points and arm angles to get the ball where he needed, and to fit throws into tight windows.
And yes, his rare talent for making opposing defenses grasp at his dust while he ran by, around, and away from them on a regular basis.
The problem was, Jackson’s rare and unique skill set somehow blinded many to his prowess and potential instead of illuminating it. While the conversation leading up to the 2018 NFL draft centered around the likes of Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, Josh Rosen and Josh Allen as potential No. 1 picks, the predraft talk about Jackson was far more critical. Many questioned his choice of representation (his mother, who refused to bow to the forces that wanted to turn her son into anything other than a quarterback), and his unwillingness to run the 40-yard dash, among other things.
The NFL seemed to agree with Jackson’s critics. While those other four passers went in the top 10, Jackson barely cracked the first round, going with the last pick of the night at No. 32 overall. Heck, even his own Baltimore Ravens took Hayden Hurst, a 26-year-old tight end, before they traded up for Jackson.
In the latter part of his rookie season, Jackson took over for an injured Joe Flacco, but was so successful he relegated the Super Bowl MVP to the bench was he returned to full strength. He led the Ravens to the playoffs, but struggled in a postseason loss to the Chargers.
All the same criticisms came roaring back.
See? This kind of quarterback can’t succeed in the NFL. It’s not sustainable. Defenses have already figured this guy out.
Fast forward a year, and Jackson is running away with the NFL MVP race. Thursday’s surgical destruction of the New York Jets was just the latest chapter in a season of dominance for the second-year quarterback.
No. 8, again, was great. 🏆
😈 298 Total Yards
😈 5 Passing Touchdowns
😈 Single Season QB Rushing Record @Ravens | #RavensFlock | @Lj_era8 pic.twitter.com/sy6QZO81u3— NFL (@NFL) December 13, 2019
Those who feared Jackson’s rushing ability were certainly proven right in that regard. The Heisman Trophy winner has already broken Michael Vick’s NFL record for rushing yards by a quarterback in a single season. After Thursday night’s performance, Jackson currently ranks fifth in the NFL in rushing yards with 1,103.
But what those who doubted Jackson’s ability as a passer didn’t count on was him leading the NFL with 33 touchdown passes, seven more than the next man up, Russell Wilson. They didn’t count on him completing 66 percent of his passes, throwing just six interceptions, or having the second-best QB rating in the league.
Especially given an entire offseason, opposing defenses were supposed to have figured out how to shut down Jackson. This was supposed to be the season that justified all the tired narratives about him being a “one-trick pony” who “can’t make plays from the pocket.”
Instead, it’s been a victory lap for arguably the most dynamic, electrifying quarterback the NFL has ever seen.
And if you go back and look at what he did in college, there’s simply no excuse.
It was all there.
In December of 2017, I wrote about why I would take Lamar Jackson over every other quarterback in the 2018 draft class. There were film breakdowns showing why the tired narratives about his skill set were wrong, and why he deserved to be considered for the No. 1 overall pick.
For me, it all came down to this:
We all know what the “prototypical NFL quarterback” looks like, and guys like Rosen, Darnold, Allen and Rudolph all fit the bill. But if I were an NFL general manager, I’d rather swing for the fences on a rare talent who might require some creativity, rather than “playing it safe” with another cookie-cutter pocket passer.
You feel more comfortable drafting the Blaine Gabberts, Christian Ponders, EJ Manuels, Brady Quinns, J.P. Losmans, Kyle Bollers, Joey Harringtons, Patrick Ramseys, JaMarcus Russells, Tim Couches, Akili Smiths, Ryan Leafs, Jason Campbells, Cade McNowns and Jim Druckenmillers?
Knock yourself out.
I’d rather ride or die with a player who could break the mold and become something the league has never seen before.
Rosen was traded after one season in Arizona, then benched for Ryan Fitzpatrick in Miami. Mayfield shined as a rookie, but has struggled and regressed in his sophomore season. Darnold has shown flashes of brilliance, but proved Thursday night how wide the gap is between him and Jackson. Allen is playing the best football of any other first-round quarterback from that draft, but nowhere near the MVP pace of Jackson.
In the end, the only reason anyone should be surprised at Jackson’s success is because of the NFL’s track record with “dual-threat” quarterbacks. For so long, the league failed to give legitimate opportunities to college quarterbacks who looked like Jackson. Even this time, the league was blinded by their biases to the point where they almost let the league’s most dynamic offensive weapon fall out of the first round.
The surprise shouldn’t be that Jackson is lighting the NFL on fire. It’s that the league gave him the chance in the first place.
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