MVP-winning, record-setting quarterback OK with switch, McSorley to start.
Wednesday, April 1, 2020, Baltimore: How can it be that one of the most electrifying quarterbacks to hit the NFL scene in recent years would be asked to switch positions?
Lamar Jackson (photo, Toledo Blade)
Apparently, the forward-thinking, bold-moving Baltimore Ravens are going to do just that. According to a team source, quarterback Lamar Jackson–the unanimous choice for league Most Valuable Player last season–will be moved to wide receiver for at least the coming season, and perhaps for the foreseeable future.
Plans to implement the switch will reportedly begin as soon as possible, but the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic is slowing all teams’ plans. The Ravens’ off-season conditioning program was scheduled to begin on Monday, April 20, three days before the annual NFL Draft is scheduled to take place.
Possibly, this move could have led to the Ravens drafting a quarterback in the middle to late rounds, as they did last year when Penn State’s Trace McSorley was selected in the sixth round. But the source indicated that McSorley would not only remain with the team but leapfrog current No. 2 signal-caller and free agent Robert Griffin III and instantly become the starter.
“You can easily see the similarities between Trace and Lamar,” the source opined. “Trace has a very underrated arm and is mobile enough to be the explosive force that Lamar was last year.”
Apparently, Jackson, who throughout his short Ravens career so far for humility and a team-oriented attitude, is completely on board with the move. He repeatedly has said that he would do anything to help the team win; the Ravens’ team-record 12-game winning streak last year has the franchise primed to be one of the favorites to win Super Bowl 55 this season.
Potency and consistency are hard concepts to maintain in football, and the Ravens exhibited plenty of both when they deployed the franchise’s best-ever offense and the NFL’s record-setting rushing attack.
Running the ball at a pace that eclipsed the 1978 New England Patriots as the league’s most prolific rushing attack, Baltimore was led by Jackson’s 1206-yard season, one that broke Michael Vick’s single-year quarterback rushing record.
In the passing game, Jackson completed over 66 percent of his passes for 36 touchdowns while throwing just six interceptions. He was sacked 23 times, but set a new club record for consecutive passes without an interception and showed he could throw both deep and intermediate-length passes.
In Baltimore, McSorley replaces Jackson at QB (photo, NBCSports)
Lots of media pundits, who had predicted Jackson would not be a successful pro-level quarterback (including ESPN’s Bill Polian and CBSSports.com’s Pete Prisco), might feel a bit vindicated by this move. Still, it appears the Ravens are looking much further back through history for their justification of it.
“For as long as anyone can recall, this team has had trouble drafting quality wide receivers,” a source said. “The Ravens still need depth and consistency at the position. They need reliable targets and plenty of them.”
Obviously, that continues to be the case. Despite the strong season turned in by last year’s first-round pick, Marquise Brown, four of last season’s six top pass-catchers in Baltimore were not wide receivers. Brown led that position group, but with only 46 receptions as he battled a Lisfranc foot injury.
On the other hand, Brown, Jackson, and almost the entire starting offensive unit, except for retiring guard Marshal Yanda, will return intact in 2020 – a rarity in the salary-cap era – so now seemed as good a time as any to make a move.
“Lamar is just so, so fast,” a team source said. “And with his many years at quarterback under his belt, he has a solid understanding of pass routes and how they should be run.
“Soon, you will see him shock the league all over again.”
Defenses that may have thought they could adjust to the Ravens’ multi-faceted run game and, at the very least, slow it down may have a new dilemma to face: the specter of Jackson catching passes instead of throwing them.
“All cards have to be on the table if you want to get better,” the source said. “It wasn’t enough to win games and set records last year. We want to take the next step and win a Super Bowl.
“You fans might not like this move, but it shows we mean business.”
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