Jaylon Ferguson poised to build on solid rookie season for Ravens
Ravens linebacker Jaylon Ferguson earned the nickname "Sack Daddy" in college because of his record-setting prowess for taking down quarterbacks.
After a slow start to his rookie season, Ferguson took advantage of more playing time when fellow linebacker Pernell McPhee suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 7.
The 6-foot-5, 270-pound Ferguson finished with 2.5 sacks, 31 tackles, and nine quarterback hits in 14 games (nine starts).
Ferguson is poised to make a bigger impact in his second year, according to coach John Harbaugh.
"Every player is different; every position even is a little different. For those guys on the edge, there are some mental responsibilities in terms of gap control, contain, even rush lanes, things like that [and] drops – in our defense – that they have to think about," Harbaugh said. "And that’s a position where it’s a quick, explosive, reaction type [of] thing. It’s so technique-driven in terms of beating a tackle on pass rush, for instance.
"Once they start to understand how to line up, they are not thinking as much coming out of the huddle and they can think more about attacking the opponent – the tackle – especially on a pass rush. I feel like they can really take a jump. So, hopefully Jaylon and guys who are in their second year can do that. I really expect them to do it, and I’m very confident that he’s going to do that, and we’ll see what happens.”
The Ravens selected Ferguson in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft. He broke the NCAA record for career sacks with 45 at Louisiana Tech, eclipsing the previous mark set by Terrell Suggs, who is Baltimore's all-time sacks leader.
As a result, Ferguson instantly drew comparisons to T-Sizzle when he arrived in Baltimore. However, he wants to create his own identity and has already shown that potential.
“It’s flattering to be compared to the great Terrell Suggs, but at the same time, he left his legacy, he left his mark,” Ferguson said. “That’s some big shoes to fill, and I’m not really trying to step in his place."
