Texans HC DeMeco Ryans keeps it real when it comes to Ravens' Lamar Jackson
On Saturday, the Houston Texans will be playing against the likely MVP of the league, Lamar Jackson, as his 2023-24 campaign was one that had him far and away the best quarterback in the league in what was somewhat of a down year across the board. The Texans, just like in Week 1, will be […]
On Saturday, the Houston Texans will be playing against the likely MVP of the league, Lamar Jackson, as his 2023-24 campaign was one that had him far and away the best quarterback in the league in what was somewhat of a down year across the board. The Texans, just like in Week 1, will be tasked with trying to stop him.
Now, you really can't stop Jackson. He is one of those game wreckers/game changers. He's a player that you can only hope to contain. Guys like Patrick Mahomes and Joe Burrow are in that same category. Soon, we could be throwing C.J. Stroud's name in there, as he is already making NFL history, but that's another topic for another day.
The Texans did a fine job in Week 1. It was likely Jackson's worst game of the season. He finished with 169 passing yards and one interception, with 38 rushing yards to go along with it. Jackson's QBR, or total quarterback rating, in that game was 12.2, which is pretty bad.
Yet, that was Week 1. Things are certainly different now for both teams. But DeMeco Ryans, the Texans' rookie head coach, knows that it won't be easy to replicate what they did in Week 1. Even with them doing what they did, the Texans still lost that game despite having a chance to take the lead before halftime.
"Yeah, you can throw as many things at Lamar [Jackson] as you want to, but he finds a way to make plays," Ryans told reporters earlier this week. "That's what makes him a special player. No matter what type of looks he's gotten on tape, he's made a ton of teams pay because of his play-making ability. He's seen a lot, made a lot of plays, so it's going to be a challenge no matter what we present or what we throw at him."
Lamar Jackson struggled in Week 1 anytime the Texans blitzed him. But, when he isn't blitzed, he is the best player in football, basically, as he led the league in passer rating when not blitzed (105). CJ Stroud was third in passer rating while not being blitzed (101.3).
There is just one problem, though: the Texans' blitz is at the third lowest rate (21%) in the NFL. As we said earlier, if you want to make things hard on Jackson, a blitz will work. However, then you run into the issue of his scrambling, and when he is a runner, it's when he is most dangerous.
There is no real recipe for stopping Jackson and the Ravens. But if there is anyone who can cook up a game plan good enough to make it difficult on the potential two-time MVP, it's DeMeco Ryans.
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