While wondering just how he got those scars...
Week 1 of the 100th NFL season concluded in spectacular fashion, and there were several performances that permeated throughout the weekend. As always, in our instant 'jump to conclusions' culture we live in, 32 different judgments were passed out based on 16 games by the time we woke up Tuesday morning:
1) The Patriots are going 19-0 (maybe not out of the realm of possibility)
2) Dak should be paid $50 million a year based on beating a hapless Giants team
3) The Steelers will regret getting rid of AB and Le'Veon (well, maybe not AB).
However, one performance stood out, and it shouldn't have been unexpected. Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens was electric against the tank...err, rebuilding Miami Dolphins en route to a 5 TD day and only missing 3 passes. I could wax poetic about how he dominated the game from start to finish, but why don't we let him tell it...
As we talked about on Sunday with Drew Brees, being a QB means being able to take the arrows that are thrown their way. This is especially so when despite all of Jackson's heroics during his high school days in Florida and eventually starring at Louisville as one of college football's premiere players. Yet it wasn't enough in the eyes of some people, who chided the decision for the Ravens to draft him as the eventual replacement for Joe 'wake me up when he does something interesting' Flacco.
Lamar didn't let the criticism stop him from leading the Ravens to a surprise playoff berth, and regardless of the opponent Sunday, he served notice that he is going to be a special player in the league. Yes, the history of the NFL is littered with supposed can't miss (Leaf over Manning?) to "he'll never make it" (Russell Wilson) prospects. At least they were given time to see if they were the real deal, but in today's culture we have become apt to call a player a bust if they aren't putting up Madden-like numbers by their second start.
Being a QB is more than just throwing passes while staring down a zero blitz package, it's being able to withstand the negativity of critics who will pick apart every aspect of their game. Just because someone doesn't fit the "mold" of a QB, doesn't mean they can't play the position. So yes, perhaps we can learn a lesson of this thing called patience, and let those who are called to play the position do so.
Not bad for a running back indeed.
Check out our latest episode of the "Final Five" in which we discuss KD's no-holds-barred interview below:
Great blog!
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