Forget About Lamar Jackson at Your Own Risk
Winning the Heisman Trophy doesn’t always translate to becoming a great professional football player, and that’s especially true for quarterbacks in the modern era. This is the trend that Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson will be fighting to break as he goes through the NFL Draft process.
After winning the Heisman Trophy in 2016, Jackson has been one of the biggest names in college football during his time at Louisville. Jackson has even gotten comparison to Virginia Tech great Michael Vick, who is a fellow Heisman winner and former number one draft pick. If Jackson can mirror Vick’s success, teams will be thrilled with their return on investment in drafting him.
During his Louisville career, Jackson totaled 9,043 yards with 69 touchdowns. However, his passing’s numbers alone aren’t what made Jackson such a dominant force on the football field. Jackson continually carved up defenses with his legs gaining 4132 rushing yards with an additional 50 touchdowns, on top of his already impressive passing numbers. But now the question remains, can he perform at the NFL level?
Throughout the draft process, Jackson has been the forgotten quarterback when talking about first round talent among the position. Rated behind the big three of quarterbacks with players like Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen, Jackson has become a borderline first to second round prospect, according to most analysts.
Mobile quarterbacks in college tend to face questions about their overall throwing ability, due to them being able to dominate games solely with their legs. Jackson was no different. As questions began to swirl about Jackson’s ability as a passer, reports began to surface that Jackson could have to play wide receiver in the NFL. Jackson quickly set the record straight by participating only in the quarterback drills at the NFL combine. Consensus is that Jackson performed well during all passing drills and of course, showed off his trademark athleticism along the way.
Now all that is left for Jackson is to convince a team that he can be the future of their franchise. Whether it is his pro day or a team visit, it is time to start betting on this kid.
If the projections are accurate and Jackson falls to the late first round, then he will be set up to succeed in the NFL. Jackson will avoid going to a team that is not prepared to hand the keys of the team to a rookie quarterback. Instead, Jackson will be going to a team that would have him sit for the beginning of his career and learn from, most likely, a proven veteran. This would allow for Jackson to develop his game as a passer, while not being thrown to the wolves. Just think, if Jackson was able to sit behind Drew Brees or Ben Roethlisberger, he would be able to learn from one of the greats of today’s game until he’s ready to take over. This thought process worked for Aaron Rodgers, who first sat behind Brett Favre before finally becoming the starter. We all know how that turned out.
If a team is able to select Jackson late in the first round and groom him as their future quarterback, that team could be getting a chance at the next Michael Vick. Pairing a polished passing game with the running ability that Jackson possesses is too dangerous to pass up.
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