Kareem Jackson Details Sean Payton Meeting that Led to Broncos Return
After keeping veteran safety Kareem Jackson on the back-burner for months, the Denver Broncos finally bit the bullet and re-signed him to a one-year deal in early May. Jackson returns for a fifth season in Denver.
Originally signed to a lucrative three-year deal in 2019 — Vic Fangio's maiden season as head coach — Jackson quickly made a name for himself in Denver and ingratiated himself with fans with his hard-hitting play style and fiery attitude. In Jackson's first year as a Bronco, he was a palpable difference-maker providing Pro-Bowl-caliber play, but in each successive season, his impact has diminished, as is often the case with players well north of 30 years old.
Having recently turned 35, Jackson is back in the Orange and Blue saddle, and ready to, ostensibly, reprise his role as Justin Simmons' defensive backfield companion. In a recent sit-down on the Up & Adams Podcast, Jackson revealed why he wanted to return to the Broncos, and what the final catalyst was to "sealing the deal," while sending a big Mile High Salute to the fans.
"For me, I've grown to love Denver. It's a great city," Jackson told host Kay Adams. "The fans there are like no other. Just having the chance to play in Mile High on Sundays, the atmosphere is ridiculous. It kind of reminds me of a college atmosphere. The fans there are great."
It took a face-to-face meeting with new head coach Sean Payton in order for Jackson to catch the vision of what the Broncos would be asking of him, and he jumped in with both feet.
"Actually, I met with Sean—had a chance to meet with him in person—and we talked about a lot of things," Jackson said. "Obviously, [we] talked about the season, talked about what it would look like with me coming back, and that kind of sealed the deal for me. And the rest is history."
On one hand, Jackson's return is slightly comforting because of his experience. A 2010 first-round draft pick of Houston's, this will be his 14th NFL season. Plus, he's a phenomenal leader, and when he's in the zone, he can be a terrorizing presence at the second level of the defense that makes receivers think twice before crossing the middle of the field.
On the other, as big of a hitter as he is, he's become an unreliable tackler. It became tiresome seeing Jackson come flying downhill into frame like a heat-seeking missile to lay the wood, and failing to wrap up, the ball carrier would so often rumble on for positive yards with the veteran safety looking on as a spectator.
Also, Jackson's nearly decade-long experience as an NFL corner served him well in coverage early on in Denver, but in the last two years, in particular, he's become a liability. Far be it from me to rest any case or take of mine on the arbitrary grading system of Pro Football Focus, but as an illustration (at least) of how his play has diminished, he finished last season as the No. 52-ranked safety with an overall grade of 64.5.
Juxtaposed with his near-elite 82.3 grade from 2019, it brings into stark relief how Jackson has slowed down. Father Time diminishes us all. As Jackson gets longer in the tooth, that slow-down effect will only become more pronounced. The Broncos are hoping to extract one last viable season out of Jackson, though.
With Vance Joseph back in Denver as defensive coordinator, Simmons is the only player on defense who was around when he was the head coach from 2017-18. Jackson is like having a coach on the field, and he goes way back with Joseph from their time together in Houston early in the veteran's career.
Simmons' experience in Joseph's scheme, and Jackson's long-standing relationship with the coach, serve as a solid foundation for the assimilation of the Broncos' new defense. And Jackson has always been a great leader and a tone-setter on defense.
The Broncos wanted to get some ducks in a row before ultimately deciding on Jackson, and although they drafted a sixth-round safety in JL Skinner, in the end, Payton and Joseph opted to bring the vet back into the fold for one last go-round.
"Throughout the whole free agency process, we had conversations with Denver early on and they told us they wanted to sort some things out," Jackson told Adams. "Obviously, understanding the business side of things, I understand you're an older guy. It usually happens a little late in free agency. But we were in conversations and we talked to them a lot and they told us that they wanted me back. We just had to wait until they got things figured out and revisit my situation."
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