2 min read • May 22, 2022
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Lamar Jackson will face another new challenge in the 2022 season after the Ravens traded away his No. 1 receiver, Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, on Draft Day, much to his chagrin.
Despite being without Brown, Jackson will be getting back running backs J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards from season-ending torn ACLs, and second-year receiver Rashod Bateman is expected to take a leap.
Most importantly, Jackson will be well past the right ankle bone bruise that kept him out for the final four weeks of the season. He will enter the season with no limitations, an important development that will help as he prepares to sign a potentially massive contract extension.
However, Jackson has a lot of question marks to go along with his promise.
Jackson was carted off in Week 14 after suffering what was thought to be a right ankle sprain. When it was revealed to be a bone bruise, the Docs opined – despite assertions from Jackson and Harbaugh that he would eventually return to the Ravens – that he would miss the rest of the season because of the immobilization needed to recover from a bone bruise.
While this injury won’t linger and is not indicative of a larger problem, Jackson’s playing style puts him in more danger to suffer injuries than other quarterbacks.
He is uniquely reliant on his world-class speed, quickness, and change of direction. That means, much like the dual-threat signal-callers that have come before him, he will inevitably decline over time.
Jackson is a unique talent, as the 25-year-old possesses elusiveness will keep him out of harm's way in a way that someone like Cam Newton couldn’t avoid.
But even last season, Jackson’s production, especially through the air, was down from his electric first three seasons. While Jackson engineered a career-high four game-winning drives, he threw for 16 touchdowns and 13 interceptions while taking a career-worst 38 sacks and 5.78 net yards per attempt. Some of that could be attributed to his less-than-stellar running game, his touchdown percentage, yards per attempt, and QBR have each gone down since his dominant MVP season in 2019.
Baltimore invested heavily in the offensive line, spending two of its first five picks to protect Jackson and bringing in veteran Morgan Moses to anchor at right tackle.
Even with the loss of Brown, the offense around Jackson should be more adept and consistent, but it remains to be seen if his down 2021 season was an anomaly or the beginning of a different phase of his career.
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