The Baltimore Ravens officially have the greatest rushing quarterback of all time. With a gazelle-like stride, uber athleticism, and a rocket arm, Lamar Jackson is one of the most dynamic players the game has ever seen. Jackson is a superstar, a fan favorite, and a staple of the purple and gold. Jackson recently accomplished one of the most impressive feats in NFL history by reaching 5,000 rushing yards. Not only did he hit the mark, he did it faster than any quarterback to ever play. The record only took Jackson 82 games to break, which seems unbelievable once you consider all the effective scramblers to suit up before him.
In the league’s 103-year history, only four quarterbacks have amassed 5,000 rush yards. Outside of Jackson, Michael Vick, Cam Newton, and Russell Wilson have also hit the 5k milestone- but Jackson is the fastest to do it. For example, it took Cam Newton over 130 games to reach the milestone in comparison to Jackson’s 82 games. By that same token, it took Russell Wilson over 150 games to make the list. Michal Vick sits atop the rushing leaderboard with a little over 6,000 career yards in 143 games. Jackson is on pace to become the NFL’s all-time rushing leader (QB) well before he retires.
Jackson is Officially Greatest Scrambler of All-Time
Action Jackson’s Origin Story
Lamar Jackson attended the University of Louisville from 2015-2017, where he cemented his legacy as arguably the greatest quarterback to come out of the school. As a freshman, Jackson showed promise, completing 54% of his passes and rushing for close to 1,000 yards. As a sophomore, Jackson took off. Every game, Jackson proved himself to be a walking (or running) highlight reel. There was nary a Saturday that Jackson wouldn’t be listed as number one on any network’s top plays. After becoming the most polarizing player in college football in less than two full seasons, Jackson was named the Heisman trophy winner in 2016. To this day, Jackson remains the youngest player to ever hoist the Heisman trophy at only 19 years old. During the campaign, Jackson passed for over 3,500 yards and rushed for over 1,500. The following season, Jackson posted even better numbers on his way to NFL superstardom.
Lamar Jackson Running Through the NFL
The Baltimore Ravens selected Lamar Jackson with the 32nd pick in Round 1 of the 2018 NFL draft. With quarterback Joe Flacco already at the helm, many pundits were not in support of the move. Flacco had begun to show his age through lackluster play and nagging injuries, thus putting the Ravens in a peculiar spot. According to sources at the time, Baltimore had no intention of taking a quarterback. Rumors that Jackson could be available in the second round began to swirl, and Baltimore saw an opportunity to make a low-risk high-reward move. Ultimately, the Ravens were rewarded. Ironically, Jackson’s draft position slipped because of the effectiveness of his legs. Scouts began to diminish Jackson’s talent as a quarterback, insinuating that he should be delegated to a wide receiver or infamously “a running back”.
Well, maybe they were on to something. Lamar Jackson is only the second quarterback in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season, Michael Vick is the other. Unlike Vick, Jackson has done it twice. That’s right, Lamar Jackson stands alone as the only quarterback in NFL history to post two seasons of 1,000 rushing yards. Not to mention, he did it consecutively. Jackson has been flying through Baltimore since the day he became the starter. In 2018 as a rookie, Jackson rushed for close to 700 yards, which was an indication of what would follow.
In 2019, Jackson posted 1,206 rushing yards on his way to winning the NFL’s MVP award. Jackson was the youngest to ever win the award at 22 years old. The following season in 2020, Jackson posted 1,005 rushing yards, his second straight season of a thousand yards. Due to injury, Jackson only played 12 games each in 2021 and 2022 but still managed to post over 750 rushing yards in each season. As for the 2023 season, Jackson has taken his overall game to the next level. The Ravens sit atop the AFC North and look to make a deep playoff run.
