If Lamar Jackson of Louisville football declares early for the 2018 NFL Draft, he should be a sure-fire first-round pick.
While Louisville football is not on the same track it was a season ago, junior quarterback and former Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson is putting together another All-American type campaign in 2017. Jackson might not win the Heisman again, but his stats are going to be on the same level they were a year ago.
Consistency has been a problem for the Cardinals this season after looking like possible College Football Playoff contenders in the preseason and during the first few weeks. Yet, the 47-21 loss to the Clemson Tigers in the third game of the season debunked many of the thoughts that the college football world had about Louisville winning the ACC and making the Playoff.
Last season, Jackson totaled 51 touchdowns to just nine interceptions, eventually winning college football’s most prestigious individual award. He’s the most polarizing player in the nation and that continued this season.
However, head coach Bobby Petrino did instill more of a pocket passing aspect to Jackson’s game this season. That was vastly different from the quarterback that relied on getting outside the pocket almost immediately on most plays.
Louisville is bowl eligible already and could finish in the top 25 rankings if they win out. Jackson does also have a chance to match his stat totals from last year if he has an impressive finish to the year. The Cardinals have two games left in the regular season, against the Syracuse Orange and in-state rival Kentucky Wildcats, then a bowl game.
Here’s 3 reasons Lamar Jackson of the Louisville Cardinals is the nation’s best quarterback.
3. He’s the most polarizing and exciting player to watch
Jackson could be the most fun player to watch since Johnny Manziel was with the Texas A&M Aggies. Few players can deliver the excitement on a play-by-play basis as Jackson does each and every week.
While the highlight reel of Jackson will feature more passes from the pocket and possibly less turnovers than a season ago, he’s actually a stronger runner this year. Jackson became smarter over the off-season and that might have taken some of the attention away.
Another major factor that took the national spotlight away from Jackson was the elevated play of Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield and the fact that the Cardinals have four losses already. Louisville had the spotlight in an early season matchup with Clemson and was defeated convincingly.
The college football world will miss Jackson if and when he decides to go pro, either after this season or the 2018 campaign. However, he’s still delivering for Louisville on a weekly basis, despite a down year for the team altogether.
2. Nearly impossible to contain for an entire game
The Virginia Cavaliers found out the hard way how good Jackson can be in both the ground game and passing game. Virginia let up close to 350 total yards for Jackson and four touchdowns. Considering the talent on the Virginia defense with players like Micah Kiser and Quin Blanding, that was a great outing for Jackson.
Syracuse now gets the opportunity to deal with Jackson in Week 12. The Florida State Seminoles and Purdue Boilermakers were the only two teams able to hold Jackson to less than three touchdowns this season, and both those contests resulted in wins anyway.
Jackson plays best with the spotlight is the brightest. Even in the losses to Clemson, NC State, Boston College, and Wake Forest, Jackson still managed 15 total touchdowns in all of those games. When the team around him steps up, Louisville is hard to handle.
Kentucky was actually somewhat successful in shutting down Jackson last year, in an eventual Wildcats victory. Even though Jackson did get five total touchdowns in that contest, Kentucky also forced him to toss three interceptions.
1. More valuable to his team than any other player in the nation
Louisville will hurt badly if Jackson decides to declare early for the NFL Draft after this season. However, he’s made Louisville a threat to defeat anyone each week with his ability to put up points on every drive. Few players possess the same ability.
Jackson won the award for best player in the country last season, but he was also the most important to his team’s success than any other. That’s continued on through this season, as the Cardinals might not have close to the same amount of victories they have right now without him.
So far, Jackson’s completion percentage, sacks, and yards per carry are all up. His turnover total, passing yards, rushing yards, and rushing touchdowns should all surpass his numbers from last year also. He’s in for another record breaking season.
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It’s largely the weapons around him that have let him down on some occasions. Yet, the receiving corps between Jaylen Smith, Dez Fitzpatrick, and Seth Dawkins have seen their production go up this season. Jackson has become a better passing quarterback and that should also benefit his draft stock come time for when he makes the jump to the NFL.