Lamar Jackson is putting the rest of the NFL on notice

There are a few different ways you can watch Lamar Jackson and he continues to rain down havoc for the Baltimore Ravens.

You can take the analytical route, breaking down the nature of his dual-threat game and seeing how it has made the Ravens seem virtually unstoppable, now with six straight wins and firmly entrenched as one of the favorites for the Super Bowl. (Fox Bet currently has them at +500 to win it all, second only to the New England Patriots, at +270.)

You can also — like many are beginning to do — speculate whether his tools and maturity have the ability to usher in a new era of quarterbacking; one where he and Patrick Mahomes shine brightest as figurehead stars capable of piecing together dueling Hall of Fame careers.

Or, simplest of all, you can just have fun with it, which might be the most savory option for those with zero in the way of allegiance to the Ravens. It’s easy. Grab some popcorn and a comfy chair. Wait for the highlight reel-worthy moments.

You won’t have to wait long.

On Sunday, Jackson’s latest tweetable snippet of magic came in the third quarter of a game the Ravens had already wrapped up, as they steamrolled the Houston Texans 41-7. It lasted for all of 10 seconds, but packed into that parcel of time was a dazzling array of spins and cutbacks, plus a burst of acceleration that made five Houston Texans defenders miss and two of them smack into each other in the confusion of his contortions.

“We know what he is capable of,” Baltimore coach John Harbaugh told reporters. “He made some great plays. He made some great plays with his legs, great plays with his arm, great plays with his mind. (That play) — you don’t expect that. That was remarkable. It was incredible, I have never seen one quite like it … except for last week. Everyone in the country will see it by tomorrow afternoon.”

LAMARVELOUS. pic.twitter.com/FdaGebKcIP

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) November 17, 2019

In his previous game, Jackson torched the Cincinnati Bengals on a similar 47-yard run. Never in league history has there been a period better suited to a big play artist. Yet Jackson offers much more than that.

His Sunday run came in the midst of the stretch of 13 consecutive completed passes. His swift footwork doesn’t just come in flashes when he feels like it — he’s the Ravens’ leading rusher for the entire season, with 788 yards.

And the big performances aren’t of the bully-boy variety that are puffed up by victimizing the NFL’s most miserable teams. This season he has torn down the Seattle Seahawks, the Patriots and now the Texans, all of whom have serious aspirations to still be playing well into the new year.

“I’m not sure we’ve actually seen anything like Jackson,” FOX NFL expert Jay Glazer told me. “He’s different. He checks every single box that you hope for. I know it’s early in his career, but (he checks) every potential Half of Fame box. He is a leader; he’s dynamic. He screws up the defensive coordinator’s game plan because it’s hard to find somebody to be Lamar Jackson in practice.

“You need like four of five different guys to try to replicate him. He’s a rare breed. He is the type of guy that can really put this league on his back for the next decade and a half — him and Patrick Mahomes.”

Lest we forget, Jackson is 22, so there is a long way to go here. But the reason why so many are able to see a glittering future is that there has been precious little to suggest otherwise.

His first start came exactly a year ago, November 18, 2018, and since then he has been virtually flawless, with a 14-3 regular season record — two of those defeats coming against Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs.

Jackson came into the league as the fifth quarterback selected in the 2018 NFL Draft, with far less hype than top pick Baker Mayfield and much speculation that his pro career would be best served as a running back or wide receiver.

“There are only 2 viable candidates right now, in 2019, for who has been the best player in the league: Lamar Jackson or Russell Wilson.” — @getnickwright

LIKE for Lamar Jackson
RT for Russell Wilson pic.twitter.com/qi1VtTaLpN

— First Things First (@FTFonFS1) November 18, 2019

Now he’s in the running to be the MVP of the entire league and as his rookie deal eventually winds down, it won’t be long before he’s being talked about in conjunction with a dazzling new contract. Elite QBs make big numbers, and Jackson is firmly in that company now.

“With Lamar, the only person in football who can argue he is playing as well as Lamar is Russell Wilson,” FS1’s Nick Wright told First Things First. “Is he the best player in football? Probably not. Is he having the best season of anyone in football? It’s him or Wilson, and I will not accept another answer.”

There was a funny little period at the start of this season where young QBs were thriving en masse — something that doesn’t happen too often in a league that chews up such individuals and spits them out to the soundtrack of crunching bones and shattered egos.

For a hot minute, Daniel Jones gave glimmers of hope to beleaguered New York Giants fans. Jacksonville Jaguars supporters began to grow out their Gardner Minshew mustaches. Mahomes and Deshaun Watson were the glamor duo seen as having the greatest likely stickability. And Jackson was thrust into that mix somewhere; not as an afterthought, but just as one of the guys.

No longer. The Ravens are riding high, and backed up by a remorseless defense and an outstanding offensive line, he is leading the charge.

There will (if historical precedent is anything to go by) come a time when there is cause to pump the brakes on the lionization of Jackson. While we have grown used to a consistent collection of esteemed veteran QBs these past years, someone has to follow them. Why not Lamar Jackson? The caveat is that no one attains greatness without a few bumps in the road. How he handles them will be crucial.

Next Monday, the Ravens play the Los Angeles Rams, which serves as some sort of a QB-hype cautionary tale in itself. Jared Goff was electrifying as Los Angeles reached the Super Bowl in February. Now his mega contract (a four-year extension worth $134 million) is being derided as administrative folly — that’s how quickly things can change.

What makes the greats great is that big performances come as a matter of routine — the norm, rather than the exception. Jackson is on that path and there will be greater challenges ahead. But for now he has a lineup willing to anoint him for long term superstardom, and the Ravens are ready to dream.