Getty Jonah Jackson playing with Rutgers in 2017.
Not much has gone right for the Detroit Lions so far during the 2020 season, but one of their rookies has been very impressive to boost a key spot on the team.
So far this season, guard Jonah Jackson has been very impressive thus far with the Lions. He’s been rock solid up front for the team and hasn’t looked out of place at all in the league making a transition to a difficult position to play.
As a result of this, Jackson has landed on an impressive list. He cracks Pro Football Focus’ all-rookie offensive line thus far during the 2020 season.
Here’s a look at the line:
The All-Rookie Offensive Line
As a whole, Jackson has been excellent to start his career and that is great news for the Lions. They need to be abl to build around Jackson for their future, and this is a great start.
Jonah Jackson Stats
Thus far this season, Jackson has taken on the look of a rock up front for the Lions. In Week 1, he played 90% of the team’s snaps and then went on from there to play a complete 100% in the weeks since. While doing so, he’s been very solid. A mark of a good lineman is often times invisibility, and thus far, Jackson has joined another former Ohio State player in Taylor Decker as a solid player up front that has played well enough to be mostly invisible early this year.
Jackson, of course, isn’t completely invisible. He has been good enough to make the PFF rookie team up front, which is an impressive accomplishment.
Jonah Jackson Called Lions Draft Steal
Detroit might have been able to steal multiple players along the way as they set out to craft their roster in the draft. Pro Football Focus took a look at naming the biggest steals in the entire draft, and the site credited the Lions with finding a pair this year, more than any other team in the NFL at this point.
The first steal they identified was Julian Okwara, an edge rusher that PFF was extremely high on as the No. 28 overall player on their board Detroit got at pick 63. Here’s what Anthony Treash wrote:
“Although he suffered a season-ending injury in Week 11 this past year, there’s no reason Okwara should have been available in the third round. With his explosiveness off the line, overall athleticism and long arms, Okwara was a first-round talent in this draft. Prior to getting hurt, Okwara was having one of the top seasons in college football at his position by owning an elite 90.4 pass-rush grade.”
From there, the Lions didn’t have to wait long to find their next steal. They traded up to get him in Jackson, a player credited as one of the best pass defending guards in the draft and PFF’s 40th rated player. The Lions scored him with pick 75.
“No one in this draft class has better pass sets than Jonah Jackson. He gets on defensive linemen rapidly and can play anywhere along the interior. While playing for Rutgers and Ohio State the past few years, Jackson logged snaps at every interior position and performed incredibly well in pass protection, recording a pass-blocking grade on true pass sets above the 90th percentile. He’s the best pass-protecting interior lineman in this class.”
Obviously, the Lions hope these players, along with the others they selected, help infuse some much needed talent on their team. If they end up getting better in the years ahead as a result of these players, it will only merely prove the point they were perhaps a bit underrated.
So far, so good for Jackson as it relates to his future.
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