If Baltimore Ravens superstar Lamar Jackson wasn’t already the best rushing quarterback to ever play, then he almost certainly is now.
On Christmas Day, Jackson rushed for 87 yards on only four carries, the highlight being a season-long 48-yard touchdown run, to lead the Ravens to a 31-2 blowout victory over the Houston Texans. In the process, Jackson surpassed Michael Vick for the most rushing yards for a quarterback in NFL history, and did it in 41 fewer games at that.
Jackson, like many quarterbacks in the league today, grew up watching Vick make electrifying plays, so to surpass him in career rushing yards is hard to fathom.
“It feels unreal, to be honest with you,” Jackson told reporters after the game. “I just give God all the glory. I’m grateful, man, because that’s a record that’s been held for a long time with Michael Vick, one of my favorite players. That’s just dope.”
Already a two-time MVP, Jackson is in the midst of the best statistical season of his career. Through 16 games, the 27-year-old has completed 67.9 percent of his passes for 3,955 yards, 39 touchdowns and four interceptions, plus 852 yards and four touchdowns as a rusher.
At this point, there aren’t many new ways to describe the absurd things he’s doing on a weekly basis.
“What could you say that would maybe parallel what [Jackson] did? It’s just another phenomenal performance,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “He set the all-time NFL record for rushing yards [by a quarterback] in the National Football League [and] pro football. That kind of speaks for itself.
“It’s just kind of what he does every week. [He] made some plays on the run. We had some tight coverage. They covered us well, but he was able to extend those plays and make those big plays in the passing game, which is kind of what he does a lot of times. It was great to see.”
Jackson is actually rushing slightly less than he has previously, but is still extremely dangerous when he does take off. He reached a top speed of 21.25 miles per hour on that 48-yard run, the fastest of his career, though he feels he can be faster.
“I was jogging,” Jackson said.
