In the space of a few minutes, has anyone ever been called “a unicorn” and “Gumby” and were the descriptions meant not only as colorful compliments but also as a warning?
The Giants will get their first look at the field at Lamar Jackson on Sunday in Baltimore. “Look” is a suitable harbinger. The Giants will definitely see Jackson. Whether or not they can put a glove on him remains to be seen.
As they try to stay alive in the NFC East playoff race, the Giants (5-9) task is to catch what can’t be caught.
“He played him in the playoffs last year, yes, he’s different,” said security Logan Ryan, whose Titans upset the Ravens in an AFC division game last year. “He’s a world-class athlete. is a generation talent. Not many ball carriers run like him with the ball in his hand, his speed, his change of direction. You really have to play fundamentally well. I don’t think it’s a one-on-one tackling game with him. he earns a living. ”
It has been quite a cost for Jackson.
The Giants’ first assignment: to find, for practice purposes, a reasonable facsimile of Jackson, one of the NFL’s very best athletes.
“We have some guys that we’ve talked about and we’re going to do our best in practice to simulate him,” said head coach Joe Judge, “but there’s a difference between someone imitating him and the real thing. ”
Teams usually use wide receivers to mimic Jackson, sometimes fast defensive backs.
‘Do we have someone? No, we don’t, ” said Ryan. If we had a Lamar Jackson to simulate him, we would probably have to play him offense. Because that guy would be really good. I just don’t think we have it, and I don’t think many people do. ”
In week 12, the Giants faced Russell Wilson, as cunning as a magician. In week 13 they faced Kyler Murray, a diminutive darter. Wilson ran 45 yards seven times in a Giants victory in Seattle. Murray ran 13 times for 47 yards in a loss to the Giants to the Cardinals.
Jackson is different, and not just because he’s taller (6 feet) than Wilson and Murray. He is the first quarterback in NFL history to rush at least half a mile in consecutive seasons. Jackson ran for an astonishing 1,206 meters in 2019 and is up to 828 meters this season. Jackson and Michael Vick (2004 and 2006) are the only quarterbacks to reach 800 rushing yards in two separate seasons.
Two weeks ago, Jackson fought through cramps and still shredded the Browns, running nine times for 124 yards and two touchdowns. Last week, he threw three touchdown passes in defeat of the Jaguars. The 2019 NFL Most Valuable Player is not the most accomplished passer the league has ever seen and he went through a rough patch this season as he battled through a case of the coronavirus.
Defenders must have a plan of attack for Jackson.
“Really just getting the air out, getting to him as quickly as possible, but also trying to control where you can cut left or right when he makes his cut,” said corner-back James Bradberry.
Jackson looks like he’s in high gear for the long run. The Ravens (9-5) need him because despite their track record, they need help to qualify for an AFC wildcard playoff spot.
“I think this guy is a unicorn in terms of how he can play and how he really plays explosively with his legs, along with the arm strength and the on-court plays he can make there,” said Judge.
Each week, Judge lists the upcoming opponent and is always free, but he hasn’t spoken about a player this season in the awe he reserved for Jackson.
“When you see this man running, he doesn’t want to slip, he doesn’t want to get out of control, this man wants to extend the game,” Judge said. “When he gets to work, you see ‘score’ is all he thinks about. It has a wobble towards it at full speed, which is very rare. It’s like trying to take on Gumby. This man can just change direction. It’s almost as if his body moves in ways you can’t simulate in practice. This guy is extremely fast, he gets that top gear in just a few steps and at the same time he can stop on a dime and change direction. ”
The Giants have been warned.