Lamar Jackson is the Steph Curry of Football
With 223 passing yards, 65 rushing yards, 4 total touchdowns, and one mega-highlight play, Sunday was a huge day for Baltimore Ravens QB, Lamar Jackson. Silencing his critics, Lamar has transformed the Ravens offense into must-watch Sunday action.
But Lamar and the Ravens aren’t running a traditional, modern-era NFL offense, but instead are winning games with hard-nosed, run-first football.
“I expect this to change the way offensive football is played in the NFL.”
When Steph Curry was crowned the MVP for the 2014–15 NBA season, he solidified his role in the league, and officially changed the way basketball is played. On Bill Simmons’s new podcast, Book of Basketball 2.0, Simmons and Ryen Russillo analyze Steph’s legacy among the all-time NBA greats, and outline how — despite the constant media doubt — the Warriors won three championships with high volume, three-point shooting.
We are young in Lamar’s NFL career, but he has lit up the league through his first sixteen regular season games. With a style like nobody else, Lamar is on pace for 3,619 passing and 1,248 rushing yards, which would top Michael Vick’s 2006 single season QB rushing record (1,039). With the city of Baltimore fully behind him, Lamar is piecing together a potential MVP season.
The more I think about Lamar’s rise, the more he reminds me of Steph. The two play completely different sports, but Lamar and Steph are game breaking, generational talents.
Lamar and Steph command your attention unlike any other athlete in their respective sports. Their videogame-esque highlights make them unique, wildly entertaining, and just plain special.
Recently, Colin Cowherd, Jason Whitlock, and others have equated reigning NFL MVP, Patrick Mahomes with Steph Curry. My problem with this comparison is that Mahomes doesn’t play QB differently, he just plays it better. Mahomes is like LeBron James, if we are sticking to basketball comparisons. Mahomes’s style is similar to that of other all-time great QBs, like Brett Favre, Steve Young, Randall Cunningham, or even the currently playing Aaron Rodgers.
Mahomes is incredibly talented and a fantastic player to watch, but he wins games like an NFL QB, not totally unique.
Lamar’s only suitable comparison is Michael Vick, who made a huge splash in the league during a short-lived prime. But Vick was forced into a west coast offense that “wasn’t run-oriented at all.” Vick had to adapt his style to fit what his coaches wanted. Lamar, on the other hand, has an entire offense tailored to his skillset, just like Golden State with Steph Curry. And Lamar is targeting Vick’s records in only his second season.
Lamar shares another quality with Steph, they both are unselfish winners. Despite all the noise, Lamar stays humble, quiet, and keeps pushing his team to be better every week.
Lamar is the undisputed leader of his team, and only cares about one thing: winning football games.
Similarly, Steph and the Warriors play a pass first, spread-the-floor offense that gets everyone involved. Even when they added Kevin Durant, the team didn’t miss a beat. Most NBA stars would be upset not being “the guy,” but Steph welcomed Durant. Steph knew Durant would help the Warriors win, and winning is the only thing that matters.
Obviously it’s too early to know for sure if Lamar will end his career with anywhere near the dynastic success of Steph and the Warriors. Injuries and other factors can completely change a player’s career. But Harbaugh might just be proven right. Like Steph Curry, Lamar could forever change how the game is played.
