Getty Lamar Jackson laughs on the bench during a 2018 game.
The Baltimore Ravens will have to wait a while to get one of their current players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame but that hasn’t stopped folks from dreaming about who might be next to make it from the team.
Recently, Good Morning Football posed the question regarding which current player analysts would most want to fast track into. the Hall of Fame. Former wideout Nate Burleson said his choice is Lamar Jackson due to all he can do at the position and how he has changed the game.
If you could snap your fingers and make any player a Hall of Famer, who would you pick?
Burleson said:
“Let’s go with Lamar Jackson, just for the simple fact that he can do everything,” Burleson said. “I know the one question people will ask, ‘well Nate, he’s going to have to have longevity if you think he’s going to be in the Hall of Fame. If he’s going to have longevity, he can’t take hits being an athletic running quarterback.’ Lamar Jackson hasn’t really taken big shots. The only big shots he’s taken is down the field. Just think about the first game of the season. This dude was delivering rocks all over the place and he was throwing the ball. We thought to ourselves, is this going to be the new Lamar Jackson? What he was doing was putting the defense on its heels.”
“Each game he’s shaking the dice, he can pretty much do whatever he wants. Do I want to be a running quarterback this game or do I want to use my arm? If he can do that without taking the big hits, we’ll see him in the Hall of Fame in about 20 years,” Burleson said.
Obviously, Jackson will have to wait for his crack at Canton, Ohio but it’s true that with some more great seasons and accomplishments, he could be a lock to get there one day. As Burleson says, if he is able to remain dangerous in plenty of ways, it will only make him more
Lamar Jackson Cracks Key PFF List for 2020
Recently, the site took a look at naming the top 50 players for the 2020 season, and Jackson checked in high on their list. Specifically, the quarterback checked in at No. 8 on the list. Perhaps surprisingly, Jackson was not higher and he actually placed below Russell Wilson and Patrick Mahomes.
Here’s what writer Sam Monson explained as to why:
“Though Russell Wilson had a higher PFF WAR figure than Lamar Jackson in 2019, Jackson was a very worthy NFL MVP. He is a unique talent who gives defenses nightmares as they work to contain both his passing threat and rushing ability, and he is the cornerstone that allows the Ravens to build a custom offense tailored to his talents. Jackson may well reinvent the quarterback position and, at the very minimum, will be one of the hardest players to limit as long as he continues to play at this level.”
Jackson could climb even higher on such lists in the future, and with another huge season with some playoff success mixed in, that would be the likely expectation for the reigning NFL MVP. Interestingly, the No. 1 overall player was defensive tackle Aaron Donald.
For now, though, Jackson will have to accept his place as a top 10 player for 2020.
Lamar Jackson Stats
This past season, Jackson has been the epitome of a dual-threat quarterback and one of the leaders in the next generation of quarterbacks that will make waves in the league. After the action concluded last week, Jackson has put up 3,127 passing yards and 36 touchdowns through the air. On the ground, he has rumbled for 1,206 yards and 7 touchdowns. As a whole, the Ravens have managed to find the best of Jackson on the field. Arguably, he’s become the most obvious MVP candidate in the league given these types of things.
Since being drafted out of Louisville, Jackson has begun to rewrite the book in the league in terms of what a quarterback is and can be. The fact that he was a shoo-in as an All-Pro is a testament to how good Jackson has been in 2019.
Jackson won’t hit the Hall of Fame just yet, but most folks understand he could easily get there with a solid continuation of his career.
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