The New York Jets hoping to find defensive success with their own Lamar Jackson
He shares a name with an MVP-caliber quarterback but this Lamar Jackson is hoping to catch on to a New York Jets team always looking to bolster their secondary. The Jets signed the former Nebraska defensive back as one of nine undrafted free agents the team added on Wednesday.
Now that we understand this is not the Baltimore Ravens signal-caller, we can simply refer to this new Jets player as Lamar Jackson.
Jackson was named to the Second-Team All-Big Ten last season. He blossomed in his senior campaign recording 40 tackles, four tackles for loss, and three interceptions for the Cornhuskers. That’s an improvement after a junior season where he had 28 tackles, two interceptions.
The way Jackson was recruited he was thought to be a corner who could handle 6’3 or 6’4 wide receivers. However, his speed isn’t considered high level and that could be a reason why he slipped out of the NFL Draft. His challenge will be keeping up with speedy receivers in the NFL.
When Jackson was being recruited, every school that tried to get him was counting on him developing into a draft pick. He was a top safety recruit but wound up moving to cornerback his freshman year. Several national outlets, including the Sporting News, projected Jackson to go in the middle rounds of the draft but didn’t get selected. The Green Bay Packers had been rumored to be interested in him.
“The first, obvious thing you notice about Jackson is his size,” said SB Nation Draft Expert Dan Kadar. “There just aren’t many 6’3, 215-pound cornerbacks out there. And the key to being that big at cornerback is utilizing it.”
The irony about his Baltimore Raven namesake is that this Jackson actually played quarterback as well as defensive back in high school. When he was looking at colleges, he changed his plan and decided to go strictly with the secondary.
Jackson became a father in March 2019, when his son, Legacy Nathan Jackson, was born.
He’s well aware that his name carries a lot of weight in football circles, even if it's because of the accolades of another player. “At first there was really nothing to it, but of course, he became a star,” Jackson told Press Box Online back in January. “He won the Heisman. He became who he was. He can have all the fame — he’s scoring touchdowns, he’s the quarterback.”
However, this Jackson wants to make sure his name means something in this league as well. “For the most part I’m going to be in the league, too,” he said. “I’m going to be living just as well.”
For Jets general manager Joe Douglas and head coach Adam Gase, the best part of that would be if this Lamar Jackson could intercept that other guy in Baltimore one Sunday in the NFL.
