While Ravens Roll, Lamar Jackson Is Ending The Mobile Quarterback Debate

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson made history Wednesday when he passed Michael Vick as the all-time leader in rushing yards by a quarterback. He rushed for 87 yards on the ground in a 31-2 victory over the Texans, raising his total to a staggering 6,110 rushing yards across seven NFL seasons.

“It feels unreal, to be honest with you,” Jackson said after the game. “I just give God all the glory. I’m grateful, man, because that’s a record that’s been held for a long time with Michael Vick, one of my favorite players. That’s just dope.”

Facing a stout Texans defense on Christmas Day, Jackson still managed to deliver as Baltimore’s virtuoso, beating Houston in every way imaginable. As he has done all season, the two-time MVP was efficient through the air and highly elusive on the ground. He threw for 168 yards and two touchdowns on 10 completions, and could have done far more through the air if the Ravens didn’t put the game away early – 48 of his 87 rushing yards came on a single run to the end zone, his fourth rushing touchdown of the season.

Without losing any of his dazzling rushing ability, Jackson is well on his way to his first season with 4,000 passing yards in another MVP-caliber campaign. Bills quarterback Josh Allen may prevent Jackson from winning the award for a third time, but his value to Baltimore is priceless in many ways. The Ravens are preparing for their sixth playoff appearance in seven seasons. Adding running back Derrick Henry in 2024 has helped the team expand its potential, but Jackson is still an entirely unique talent serving as conductor for one of the greatest offenses in the history of modern football.

With Vick’s rushing record broken and yet another trip to the postseason on the horizon, Jackson is closing in on possibilities that have long been considered theoretical. In the past, the vast majority of running quarterbacks have either cut back on the ground late in their careers or suffered the consequences. Jackson is doing neither.

As mobile quarterbacks go, Allen and Russell Wilson are success stories, successful rushers who learned to lean more heavily on their arms and extended their careers. Cam Newton, Colin Kaepernick and Robert Griffin III are cautionary tales, talented players who relied too heavily on their mobility and suffered career-shortening injuries. Entering his seventh year, Jackson is doing his own thing; he’s developing as a passer without sacrificing anything on the ground. He’s burning at both ends and only growing brighter.

There’s only one point of comparison for what Jackson is trying to do: the man he just passed for the rushing record. Vick never sacrificed either. But Vick’s career is also a titanic “what if” in the history of the NFL, an undeniable talent losing two years of his prime to prison and suspension. By the time he began to truly develop his passing game with the Eagles, he was already nine years into a seven-season career. His legs didn’t last much longer, and he never managed to reach 4,000 passing yards.

Jackson has suffered his share of injuries too, but barring any unforeseen setback, he won’t be interrupted as Vick was. The window is wide open for him to win a Super Bowl, the NFL’s ultimate metric for quarterback success. He hasn’t climbed that mountain yet, but he’s only getting better. 

Jackson has been derided for years, labeled a glorified running back in a dressed-up wildcat formation. But the doubters are melting away as he gradually becomes the most dangerous offensive player in NFL history. A championship victory would abolish skepticism altogether.