MythBusters: Yes, Lamar Jackson is a pocket passer

Just because Lamar Jackson is fast, doesn’t mean he can’t throw from the pocket. Doug Farrar takes one analyst to task for this assumption.

It’s a common assumption when evaluating running quarterbacks that those quarterbacks are better on broken or designed plays in which they leave the pocket and go “schoolyard,” making things up as they go along. Sometimes it’s true, but other times, it’s an automatic label that doesn’t hold water.

Lamar Jackson is one of the most dynamic running quarterbacks in NFL history. He’s on pace to break Michael Vick’s single-season record of 1,039 rushing yards by a quarterback, set in 2006. And there’s no doubt that what Jackson does when he tucks and runs is explosive, spectacular and highlight-worthy. This 47-yard touchdown run on Sunday in Baltimore’s 49-13 thwacking of the Bengals is one of the better examples.

But to assume Jackson can’t throw from the pocket just because he can scald defenses with his feet is something we should be past when we look at quarterbacks of Jackson’s type. Whether it’s Vick later in his career or Randall Cunningham later in his career, or any number of quarterbacks in the modern day who are competing for the 2019 Most Valuable Player award, we are clearly in an era where quarterbacks of a certain stripe can actually do more than one thing to bring value to their teams.

But there was a reach back to the old days in the CBS broadcast of the game. Color announcer Rich Gannon, generally one of the more astute members of his profession, had this to say with 12:18 left in the first quarter, right after Jackson led his team downfield with more than one nice throw from the pocket, and finished it off with a 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mark Andrews:

“The Ravens do such a good job changing the launch point for Lamar Jackson. He rarely throws the ball from the pocket. They get him out on the edges, they cut the field in half, and he throws the ball so well and so accurately on the move.”

To be clear, this wasn’t Gannon slamming Jackson in any way. But when we look at the stats, we see that the “he rarely throws the ball from the pocket” statement is quite incorrect. Per Sports Info Solutions, Jackson has attempted 240 passes from the pocket this season, completing 134 for 1,611 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions, and a passer rating of 95.9. This season, Jackson has more attempts from the pocket than Kirk Cousins, Mitchell Trubisky or Josh Allen.

Furthermore, Jackson isn’t one of the league’s more prolific out-of-pocket passers, probably because when he’s out of the pocket, he’s most likely running. Here’s a short list of the quarterbacks who have more passing attempt outside the pocket than Jackson’s 34: Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, Gardner Minshew, Carson Wentz, Josh Allen, Derek Carr, Baker Mayfield, Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford.

So maybe we shouldn’t assume what we have always assumed. The intention here is not to go after Gannon specifically — if we’re going to go after anyone for their Lamar Jackson takes over time, it would always be Bill Polian — but it is a kind request for announcers and analysts to watch what Lamar Jackson is doing, and to understand and communicate that it’s not at all like the historical stereotype.

Touchdown Wire editor Doug Farrar has also covered football for Yahoo! Sports, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, the Washington Post, and Football Outsiders. His first book, “The Genius of Desperation,” a schematic history of professional football, was published by Triumph Books in 2018 and won the Professional Football Researchers Association’s Nelson Ross Award for “Outstanding recent achievement in pro football research and historiography.”

Dr. Oz wants to see Sterling Shepard’s brain

Dr. Oz wants to see the brain of New York Giants WR Sterling Shepard and discusses whether or not the youngster should consider retirement.

Every time an NFL player suffers a well-publicized injury, doctors from across the country rush to have their voices heard, and the extremely popular Dr. Mehmet Oz is no different.

Prior to the New York Giants’ Week 10 loss to the New York Jets on Sunday, Oz was asked about Sterling Shepard, his multiple concussions and what he might recommend for the wide receiver.

“Sterling Shepard may join other very talented athletes who retire early from their sport because of concussions,” Oz told TMZ Sports. “Professional athletes feel more pressure to perform physically, but Shepard has a long career ahead of him doing other things, but his mind has to remain intact.

“But I wouldn’t rely on whether you’ve had a concussion or not to determine if you retire. You want to actually look to see if there are cognitive changes — are you thinking differently?

“If Sterling Shepard’s brain is still functioning as a young man’s should, then I’m fine with it. If it’s not, he should be reconsidering returning to the gridiron.”

By all accounts, Shepard’s cognitive processes remain the same despite the presence of concussion-like symptoms, but there has been some pressure from his inner circle to potentially consider walking away from the game.

“Biggest advice for [Shepard] today would be start taking your omega-3 fats because we know they make your brain cells more fluid and help them become more resilient to injury,” Oz added. “More importantly, go through some of the simple and basic testing.”

Oz concluded by leaving a standing invitation for Shepard to meet with him at his New York offices.

The Giants have not placed Shepard on injured reserve, and despite the persistent issues, remain hopeful he can return to the field this season.

[lawrence-related id=632463,632454,632446]

Air Force Football: Veterans Day Edition

Falcons Fly on and Off the Field Integrity First. Service Before Self. Excellence in All We Do. Contact/Follow @Sean or @MWCWire The Air Force football team has began to garner a lot of attention as a contender in the Mountain West Conference. You …

[jwplayer lDMbnhq7-sNi3MVSU]

Falcons Fly on and Off the Field

Integrity First. Service Before Self. Excellence in All We Do. 

Contact/Follow @Sean or @MWCWire

The Air Force football team has began to garner a lot of attention as a contender in the Mountain West Conference. You would be hard pressed to anoint a hotter team in either division of the Conference, and that includes Boise State.

In spite of an early season loss to the aforementioned Broncos, and a heart-wrenching defeat at the hands of bitter rival, Midshipmen, the Falcons have rallied. Last week they gutted out a hard fought win against their Service Academy rivals from West Point. And prior to that, they took their previous four conference opponents to task, routing virtually all of them.

The Falcons now sit at 7-2, remain undefeated at home and are bowl eligible with three games remaining. They also own the second most efficient offense in the country and to no-ones surprise, have committed the fewest penalties per game in all of college football. So you can see why there is a lot of excitement earning attention for the Air Force football program.

More than Just a (REALLY GOOD) Football Program

The Air Force Academy’s Mission is “to educate, train and inspire men and women to become officers of character motivated to lead the United States Air Force in service to our Nation.”. Their Vision is “The Air Force’s premier institution for developing Leaders of Character”. These are so much more than football players, students or educators.

During the Mountain West Conference’s Media Day’s in the pre-season, Coach Troy Calhoun said one single goal stands above all others at his program, and that is to graduate as many seniors to serve as officers as possible. Well done coach, well done. At the conclusion of the academic year, Calhoun will have overseen another 30+ seniors to graduation. There are some terrific athletes at the Air Force (Army and Naval) Academies, but these are even better women and men.

For perspective, the three Military Academies are a combined 16-7 this season against non-military schools. These are officers in training, who happen to play football on top of a schedule that includes full-time military training while completing one of the most demanding academic curriculum in the country. Football is the “easiest” part of their day.

I don’t bring this up to diminish the many outstanding scholar-athletes that make up the NCAA landscape at non-military schools. I don’t think it can be overstated though, how impressive it is that these young men and women- specific to this article, the Falcon Football team; are not just able to participate or compete, but to excel and succeed on the gridiron.

Let me be clear; I am not a military Veteran myself. But I do have this privilege of covering the Air Force Falcons football team, which I love. And I am so incredibly Blessed to have this platform to thank all of those who are serving and have served this Great Nation. Because of your commitment and sacrifices, I enjoy leisure such as this, freedom to pursue more, and most importantly the Freedom to Glorify my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, whom I pray to with gratitude for your Blessing and Protection. Thank you, thank you, thank you to all you Veterans.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1367]

[protected-iframe id=”a91365fa8364d5918c7afbfd61fa3801-97672683-123448869″ info=”cdn-images.mailchimp.com/embedcode/horizontal-slim-10_7.css” ]

[protected-iframe id=”a4765d451d4d2134c802175f6a037fca-97672683-123448869″ info=”//percolate.blogtalkradio.com/offsiteplayer?hostId=671539″ width=”100%” height=”550px” frameborder=”0″]

Locked On Spartans Podcast: A wild sports weekend in East Lansing

Wil and Matt recap the crazy sports weekend that was in East Lansing

Wil Hunter and Matt Sheehan talk about the emotional night in the Breslin Center and how amazed they are by Cassius Winston. Then they discuss the epic collapse from MSU football, how Mark Dantonio’s post game comments weren’t good enough and play a game of “take thermometer.”

You can find the episode on iTunes, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1362]

10 ultimate bachelor party destinations

These are the world’s top 10 destinations for a bachelor party, according to a stag do index created by Grosvenor. The study ranked cities based on number of bars, English proficiency, cost of a pint, food costs, and more. 1. London 2. Prague 3. Budapest 4. Madrid 5. Las Vegas 6. Barcelona 7. Moscow 8. Krakow 9. Sofia 10. Cancun

These are the world’s top 10 destinations for a bachelor party, according to a stag do index created by Grosvenor. The study ranked cities based on number of bars, English proficiency, cost of a pint, food costs, and more. 1. London 2. Prague 3. Budapest 4. Madrid 5. Las Vegas 6. Barcelona 7. Moscow 8. Krakow 9. Sofia 10. Cancun

10 ultimate bachelor party destinations

These are the world’s top 10 destinations for a bachelor party, according to a stag do index created by Grosvenor. The study ranked cities based on number of bars, English proficiency, cost of a pint, food costs, and more. 1. London 2. Prague 3. Budapest 4. Madrid 5. Las Vegas 6. Barcelona 7. Moscow 8. Krakow 9. Sofia 10. Cancun

These are the world’s top 10 destinations for a bachelor party, according to a stag do index created by Grosvenor. The study ranked cities based on number of bars, English proficiency, cost of a pint, food costs, and more. 1. London 2. Prague 3. Budapest 4. Madrid 5. Las Vegas 6. Barcelona 7. Moscow 8. Krakow 9. Sofia 10. Cancun

Is Steelers HC Mike Tomlin a favorite for coach of the year?

Mike Tomlin has done a masterful job of coaching this season.

The most polarizing figure in Pittsburgh sports might just be Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. It seems the media and fans display very little middle ground when it comes to the head coach in his 13th season with the Steelers. For many, Tomlin is the perfect fit for what it means to be a Steeler head coach and his consistency is what keeps fans and media endeared to him.

But on the other side, you have those who view the near-decade absence from a Super Bowl championship and a perceived lack of institutional control as his biggest flaws and the reason the Steelers need to move on from Tomlin.

However this season, it is hard to argue with the job Tomlin has done with this team. Few teams could absorb the loss of its best wide receiver and a franchise quarterback in the same offseason along with the litany of other injuries along with the starting lineup and rally a team to four straight wins and having a team once 1-4 in the playoff hunt.

If the Steelers continue on this path and can find their way to the playoffs after a start that mathematically was the longest of longshots, he will be a strong candidate for coach of the year. This would be a bitter pill for many of his critics to swallow but from an objective standpoint, you cannot undersell the coaching job Tomlin has done this season.

[vertical-gallery id=453999]

[lawrence-related id=454232]

NFC playoff picture: Where the Eagles stand after Cowboys loss on Sunday night

NFC Playoff picture and where the Eagles stand after Cowboys loss

[jwplayer YHRlNYBP]

The Philadelphia Eagles have finished up a much-needed bye week as the team sits at 5-4, with the New England Patriots visiting the Linc this week.

[lawrence-related id=625787,625782,625774]

Things seemed cloudy on Sunday with the San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks, and Green Bay Packers all playing so well. It was assumed that the NFC East might only get one team into the playoffs with Philadelphia or Dallas representing the division in the postseason.

After Sunday’s wild and crazy action, culminating with the Cowboys’ huge loss at home to the Vikings, the NFC is now wide open.

Here are your current NFC standings:

National Football Conference

San Francisco 49ers 8-0
Green Bay Packers 8-2
New Orleans Saints 8-2
Seattle Seahawks 7-2
Minnesota Vikings 7-3
Dallas Cowboys 5-4
LA Rams 5-4
Philadelphia Eagles 5-4
Carolina Panthers 5-4
Chicago Bears 4-5
Detroit Lions 3-5-1

Even with the Eagles Week 10 bye,  six of the eight teams currently ahead of them in the playoff picture all did battle with one another on Sunday, with the Panthers losing to the Packers, the Cowboys losing to the Vikings at home, and the 49ers hosting the Seahawks on Monday Night Football.

The Eagles will host the Patriots this week and Seahawks and the Seahawks next Sunday, before playing four of their remaining five games against teams that are a combined 4-22. After the two home matchups, the Eagles will travel to Miami to face the Dolphins, then they’ll host the Giants, travel to Washington, host Dallas and then finish the regular season on the road at MetLife Stadium against the Giants.

After the crushing loss to the Vikings, Dallas will face the Lions, Patriots, Bills, Eagles, and Rams over the next five weeks in a scenario that will make the Week 16 showdown in Philadelphia for the NFC East title.