DUAL THREAT AWAITS
Texans face a unique challenge in Ravens MVP candidate Jackson
Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson tuned up for his first appearance against the Texans with another terrific performance Sunday when the Ravens pulverized Cincinnati 49-13.
Thanks to Miami’s victory at Indianapolis, the Texans are coming off their open date with a 6-3 record and a one-game lead over the Colts for first place in the AFC South. The Ravens are 7-2 and on top of the AFC North.
Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel
has two weeks to prepare for Jackson, the most unique quarterback in the NFL because he’s the kind of dual threat the league hasn’t seen since Michael Vick was confounding defenses with his strong arm and magnificent running ability.
“A lot of times, running quarterbacks aren’t really runners,” Crennel said. “Lamar’s a runner as well as a quarterback, and that’s a double whammy on you. You have to defend him as a runner, and you have to defend him as a quarterback who can run. All of those dynamics together make him tough to defend.”
If Jackson treats the Texans the way he treated the Bengals, it could get ugly. Jackson completed 15 of 17 passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. He ran seven times for 65 yards, including a 47-yard touchdown.
“They have a lot of different schemes you have to prepare for and do a good job against,” Crennel said. “A running quarterback is a problem. Most teams don’t run the quarterback. The quarterback may have to scramble a lot, but having designed running plays for him, not many teams do that. That poses a lot of
problems.”
No player on the Texans’ defense knows that better than cornerback Johnathan Joseph. He’s played against a lot of outstanding quarterbacks in his 14-year career. Asked about the best running quarterback he’s tried to tackle, Joseph didn’t hesitate.
“Vick, for sure,” he said. “I remember when I was playing in Cincy, and it was third-and-12, and he scrambled around and threw a laser to (tight end) Algae Crumpler, and I thought, ‘Man, this guy’s insane.’
“I haven’t played against Jackson, but I’ve watched him. I was unsure of how he was going to do in this league just from taking hits. But he’s not taking many big hits because he’s way more elusive than he’s gotten credit for.”
There are a lot of great passers in the NFL, but no quarterback runs like Jack
son, who has 702 yards (6.6 per carry) and six touchdowns. He’s on a pace for 1,248 yards.
“He’s not out there just running around,” Joseph said. “He’s being creative with it. He has a vision where he can see the next cut, and he understands situations, when to get down and slide. That makes the defense stay honest.”
The Texans have played against mostly pocket passers this season, including a couple like Patrick Mahomes and Jacoby Brissett who can move around to buy time to locate receivers.
The best runner the defense has gone against was Jacksonville rookie Gardner Minshew II. He ran 10 times for 90 yards, but the Texans swept the Jaguars and allowed only 15 points, including one touchdown. They haven’t faced a quarterback as dangerous as Jackson, who has 15 touchdown passes and five interceptions.
Jackson twice has posted a perfect 158.3 rating — in victories over Miami and Cincinnati in which he completed 32 of 37 passes for 547 yards and eight touchdowns without an interception. The Ravens outscored the Dolphins and Bengals 108-23 in those games.
“It’s about every guy doing more,” Joseph said about what it takes to have a chance against Jackson. “We have a runner unaccounted for because he’s at the quarterback position, so you have an extra guy and an extra gap. When the ball crosses the line of scrimmage, shed your block and be in your gap when you’re supposed to be.”
The Texans may be disciplined enough to carry out Crennel’s game plan perfectly, but just because they get to Jackson doesn’t mean they’ll be able to bring him down. He’s not averaging 78 yards rushing a game by being easy to tackle.
The Texans have been outstanding against the run, allowing only 84.1 yards, an average that was third going into this weekend’s games. The keys to the Texans’ run defense are nose tackle D.J. Reader, inside linebackers Benardrick McKinney and Zach Cunningham, and the safeties.
“Against the run, you’ve got to be good down the middle,” Crennel said. “Your nose has to be good, and your linebackers behind him have to be good. If the ball gets to the second level, the safety has to be good, too.
“Generally, when you have a guy like Jackson who’s as fast as he is, if you don’t pursue, he’s going to outrun you. They better pursue, but if they overpursue, hopefully, there’ll be somebody behind them he has to cut back to.”
And that somebody better be able to get Jackson on the ground. No matter how well a defense does to keep Jackson in the pocket, it can never relax.
In Sunday’s victory at Cincinnati, Jackson had 18 yards on his first six carries. Then he escaped for the 47-yard touchdown run on which he twisted away from defenders.
“It’ll be a good challenge for us, and we’re looking forward to it,” Crennel said. “We’ll see if we can slow him down. We have to put some stones in the way and hope he can trip over a stone or something like that.”
In other words, Crennel will leave no stone unturned trying to devise strategy to contain Jackson, a legitimate MVP candidate who’s dazzling fans around the NFL in his second season.