Mike Freeman: “What Lamar Jackson is doing right now is remarkable, and no one but Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes is doing better… He’s such a threat to do both things, both running and throwing, that I think he would beat almost any defense now. Coming into the league he was always a far better passer than people gave him credit for. He was always very accurate, and obviously he’s a really good athlete who can run. He can do two things really well that are hard to teach. One, he’s very smart, prepares well, is studious, and is a leader, and two, you really can’t prepare for a guy who is that fast and that accurate. Teams have a hard time comprehending and figuring out what he’s doing. He knows how to run without getting hurt and he’s also a pocket passer.I think the risk [of him getting hurt] was much overstated.” (Full Audio at Bottom of Page)
Listen to Bleacher Report columnist Mike Freeman explain to a flabbergasted Chris Broussard and Rob Parker why he recently wrote a column that anointed Lamar Jackson the third best quarterback in the NFL.
Jackson’s Ravens are out to a roaring 2-0 start with the second-year starter playing like an early-MVP candidate, leading the NFL in passer rating and tied for the NFL lead with 7 touchdowns to go with zero turnovers. He’s also added 126 yards on the ground as well, including 123 yards on the ground in Week 2 vs. Arizona.
Most of Freeman’s column was spent chiding pundits who said Jackson couldn’t throw the football, most notably, former NFL executive Bill Polian, who said on ESPN last year that he thought Jackson should play wide receiver in the NFL.
Freeman says Jackson is now a lethal ‘pocket passer’ who doesn’t need to simply run to beat defenses.
Still, the critics aren’t that impressed by Jackson’s hot start, and for good reason.
Jackson’s Ravens steamrolled the Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals, arguably the two worst teams in the NFL, with Miami, a team Jackson threw five of his seven touchdown passes against, perhaps the worst team in the history of the league.
Jackson went 6-1 as a starter last season and electried a dormant Ravens team that was handcuffed by an aloof Joe Flacco, but Jackson finished with the third worst QBR in football, only topping Ryan Tannehill and Josh Rosen. He also didn’t complete more than 14 passes in any game last season either.
In Baltimore’s 23-17 loss in the Wild Card round last season, Jackson posted an ugly 9.5 QBR game, was sacked 7 times, and fumbled another three times in a game where Baltimore scored two late touchdowns in garbage time.
Check out the audio below as Freeman details to Broussard and Parker why Jackson is one of the most valuable stocks in the league and a guy who is going to keep dominating NFL defenses, even the best ones.