Adoree Jackson Likely to Be Tasked with Slowing Down One-time Teammate

Usually, when a player returns from an extended injury-related absence, he's eased back into the lineup on a pitch count.

Such was not the case for New York Giants cornerback Adoree' Jackson, who returned in time for last week's Wild Card game against the Vikings after sitting out several games following a Week 11 knee injury.

Jackson, to his credit, made every bit of the difference for the Giants defense that they hoped he would. Asked to guard one of the best receivers in the game, Jackson held Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson to seven receptions for 47 yards on nine targets in the Wild Card win last week--a far cry from the 12 receptions for 133 yards and a touchdown that Jefferson was able to collect in their first matchup of the season without Jackson on the field.

As New York prepares to head to Philadelphia, Jackson will likely be matched up against another one of the top receivers in the league, A.J. Brown, with whom he was teammates for two seasons in Tennessee with the Titans.

When asked what makes Brown so good, Jackson was very complimentary but said it is not necessarily the physical traits but who Brown is that makes him special.

“He is just a dog,” Jackson said. “I don’t know any other way to explain it. A guy that gets after it attacks the ball can run every route in the playbook. A complete receiver can block can do all the things that you would want. That’s truly a great player.”

Even with his success against Jefferson last week, the task won’t be easy slowing down Brown. In their Week 14 matchup against the Eagles, Brown caught four passes for 70 yards and a touchdown, another game without Jackson’s services.

That is why he has been focused on looking forward and not leaning on prior success to predict his future. He alluded to that while talking about things he could take away from his matchup against Jefferson and apply it to his matchup against Brown.

“I think just trying to keep stacking days, coming into work every day,” Jackson said. “Just trying to put your best foot forward and win the day. I think that’s the only thing you can do; you can’t focus on the past and what you did. It’s about what you’re trying to do, and for us, it’s just get better every day and try to win it all.”

Jackson is familiar with Brown and what he brings to the table after having a chance to match up with him in one-on-ones every day for two seasons and watching him work from inside of the building. He always believed that Brown was capable of the elite-level play he has exhibited in Philly this season.

Now on a team that emphasizes passing the ball more, Brown has been able to fully shine under the lights, and Jackson is not surprised.

“I think as a rookie, he is what he is now. I think he always possessed that mentality to attack, to be different in this league, and you can see that every week,” Jackson said. “I feel like he’s been doing that since his rookie year.

"That’s a credit to him and his mentality to go out there and try to prove that he’s the best regardless of the situation. I know we go from a team that doesn’t throw the ball to now he’s getting like 1,000 yards every year. He’s been impactful and proves he’s dominant in this league.”

Although it will be an individual feel to their matchup on Saturday, Jackson understands that the only way they will have success is as a full unit. That has been the secret to their success this season. Anytime someone was out, others stepped up and answered the call whenever their number was called.

“We all ride for each other and play for each other and understand that it’s no ‘I;’ it’s ‘we’ when we’re out there and 11 hats to the ball flying around,” Jackson said. “That’s a credit to Wink and the guys here buying in and understanding that we just want to write our own narrative, try to be special in our own eyes, and write our own history.”

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