Baltimore Ravens: Is Lamar Jackson setting himself up for failure?
An unsustainable path:
What has so many of us worrying about Lamar Jackson’s future is obvious: his running style of quarterback-play is simply unsustainable long-term. It’s incredibly exciting during the player’s prime, but the beating that they subject themselves to quickly deteriorates their bodies at an alarming rate. Jackson’s teammate Robert Griffin III can give him a perfect example and teach him a valuable lesson to change his play-style sooner rather than later.
While the fall of RGIII was far from his fault (looking at you, Mike Shanahan), many knew that he would have to change his methods to prolong his NFL career. Alas, he never got the chance, and now the former 2012 no.2 overall pick is barely sticking around in the league.
Even before Griffin III, there had been plenty of examples of failed mobile quarterbacks such as Kordell Stewart or Akili Smith. Another recent flop was Johnny Manziel. Again, while his play was far from his undoing, most knew that his play was temporary at best.
What will separate Lamar Jackson from these busts will be his determination to become a better passer. Unless your name is “Cam Newton” and you’re built like a tank, running 100+ times a season isn’t ideal. Instead, Jackson must begin modeling his game after guys like Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson. While both still use their legs to break the will of opponents, they primarily use their arms as their primary weapon. Their mobility is a secondary weapon to them, used to manipulate the defense and bend them to their will. Accomplish this transition, and Jackson will be just fine moving forward. But, this is far from a simply, easy task.
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Being a mobile quarterback isn’t an automatic death sentence to your career… as long as you’re willing to progress as a more complete player. Lamar Jackson’s current approach to the game will get him injured and beat-up before he has a chance to dominate the league. Jackson needs to learn to throw better and use his legs to extend plays more-so than taking off ASAP, because all he’s doing right now is setting himself up for failure.