Lamar Jackson's 58.2% completion percentage and 156 rush attempts in the eight games he started at quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens has many people believing that Jackson is an inaccurate passer and a system quarterback, one who will be overly reliant on his ability to run for the duration of his NFL career. Furthermore, they believe that his 2019 season will be more of the same. In their minds, it is a foregone conclusion with the Ravens bringing in Offensive Coordinator Greg Roman, who tends to implement run-heavy offenses. Some early projections have Jackson taking as many as 240 carries.
It's easy to see how looking at last year's numbers and not understanding why Baltimore deployed Jackson the way that they did in year one could lead someone down the path of thinking he's not an accurate pocket passer and that his upcoming year will yield similar results. This article will show you why Jackson being a limited pocket passer is a false narrative and why it's likely the Ravens will pass the ball more than people think this upcoming season.
What Happened In 2018?
Recall that last year Joe Flacco was injured and Lamar Jackson was called into action. While the Ravens tried in the 2018 offseason to install an offense that both quarterbacks could operate, the reality is that Flacco and Jackson were stylistically very different players. The offensive scheme that accounted for Flacco's lack of mobility was not going to work for Jackson's skillset. Recall also that when Jackson took over, it was the latter half of the season when opposing teams' defenses tended to be more worn down and susceptible to giving up yards against tough running. The Ravens looked at all these factors and decided to implement a system that would suit Jackson's skills, would not push him to do too much too fast, and would give him a chance to win games and save what was quickly becoming a lost season. This approach was successful, as the Ravens made the playoffs and Jackson did not look overwhelmed as a passer.
Breaking Down the Film
For the sake of brevity, below are three plays that best exemplify Jackson’s growth and abilities. While Jackson was not perfect as the starter, he showed far more propensity to make plays like the ones that I will showcase here than negative ones. It was hard to choose three out of the many great plays on his film, leading to the belief that he has the ability to be a competent and accurate pocket passer is his baseline and not the outlier.
Vs. The Chargers in the 1st Round of the Playoffs
Here's an impressive throw that Jackson made early in the playoff game against the Chargers on third down. It was one of the few times in this game that his line protection held up and he didn't have someone immediately in the backfield harassing him. Jackson fit this ball perfectly between Derwin James and Jahleel Addae to pick up the first down. Place that ball anywhere but where he did and it would be batted down or become an interception. That's a very high difficulty throw fit into such a small window and one that demonstrates his ability to fit the ball into really tight spaces.
Vs. The Raiders Week 12
Here's one from the Raiders game that was really high-level stuff. From the pocket, Jackson faked play action, stepped, set, looked off the defensive backs to the left side, and with pressure in his face from Maurice Hurst, he fired a beautiful ball to the right that Mark Andrews caught in stride. Say what you will about the Raiders defense on the play, but what Jackson did here is something that I would expect more from a seasoned NFL veteran than a rookie with limited starting experience.
Vs. The Chiefs Week 14
Here's a great one from the Chiefs game. Jackson hung in the pocket as long as he could, climbing the pocket at least twice to avoid pressure, reset, and delivered the ball. He used his feet incredibly well to avoid the rush until Kenneth Dixson could get open. Compare this to other rookies who probably would have broken the pocket and scrambled for a minimal gain. Jackson seemed to always be looking to pass first, not run. That's very mature play from a rookie who has wheels. He understands his NFL success is going to be linked to his ability to operate from the pocket.
What about 2019?
Greg Roman being brought in as the offensive coordinator probably does mean this team wants to run at a heavier rate than many of their modern counterparts, but it does not mean they will be rushing the ball 70-80% of the time as some are projecting. Roman has never had a run-pass ratio over 51% in any of his previous stints with other teams. Analysts are assuming last year’s offense is going to be exactly what they roll out there this year. That assumption is recency bias at its finest. The Ravens hired David Culley as the passing game Coordinator in the offseason. Culley was with Andy Reid on the staff of the Eagles and Chiefs and helped craft some pretty creative play concepts. We’re going to see some RPO and motion-based plays incorporated into the passing game that we didn’t necessarily see last year. That should help make the offense as a whole more lively than it was in 2018.
There is some hand-wringing about who will catch the ball when Jackson is passing. I would suggest that the Ravens do not have to run their passing offense explicitly or even primarily through their wide receivers to have a successful passing attack. Tight ends and running backs sometimes can be the means by which a passing offense operates. This was the way Baltimore was trending prior to this draft by investing highly in three tight ends, two with first-round draft picks last year and one with a sizable extension. While Mark Ingram is best between the tackles, he is a capable pass catcher who can keep defenses guessing about what the Ravens will do on first and second downs. So even when not factoring in receivers, there are options for Lamar Jackson.
The Ravens did add two very capable receivers who can make contributions from the get-go in Marquise Brown and Miles Boykin. Brown is a playmaking threat no matter where he lines up in the formation and has the capacity to take short and long passes for big gains. Boykin is a bigger-bodied receiver who will probably be tasked with work on the outside, but he has the versatility to work closer to the line of scrimmage. His contested catch work will be a great asset to Jackson. Additionally, Jordan Lasley and Jaleel Scott will both have another year under their belts and both showed some promise last year as rookies. This receiving group is young, but there should be enough here for Jackson to have a more-than-competent passing game.
Conclusion
Does any of this mean that Jackson doesn't have work to do? No. Does it mean his mechanics can't improve? No. In fact, Jackson himself recently said he wants to work on better mechanics this summer when releasing the ball so he is more accurate than he was as a rookie. Most rookies have work to do on that front after their first starting experiences. It does not mean Jackson lacks the capability to throw an accurate ball and operate from the pocket. I would argue it is what he is best at.
Will Jackson stop running the ball? Of course not! It’s what makes him an exciting quarterback from both a real-life and fantasy perspective. It is truly an ace up his sleeve that defenses must account for. However, he will prefer to operate from the pocket and we should see more of that this year. If he can do both effectively, a top-ten fantasy finish is likely.