Lamar Jackson backed up what he said and unlocked a new level of trust from Ravens WR Zay Flowers
There are few players in NFL history like Lamar Jackson as there are few things on the football field he cannot do. Passing? Check. Running? Check. Catching his own pass? Refer to last year's playoffs. Big-time check.Blocking? We're not ready to check that box just yet, but the willingness is certainly there. Baltimore Ravens wide receiver […]
There are few players in NFL history like Lamar Jackson as there are few things on the football field he cannot do.
Passing? Check. Running? Check. Catching his own pass? Refer to last year's playoffs. Big-time check.
Blocking? We're not ready to check that box just yet, but the willingness is certainly there. Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers now knows this better than anyone.
Flowers and Jackson helped secure a key victory this past Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, and a good play early on in the game almost became a great one because of Jackson going the extra mile.
Flowers took a simple hitch route for 22 yards late in the second quarter. The second-year receiver went out of bounds to stop the clock, but Jackson ended up right next him after sprinting to catch up with him.
He was ready to block for Flowers to get more yardage upfield.
As Flowers explained on This is Football with Kevin Clark, it was the personification of Jackson's team-first attitude, and a confirmation of what the two-time MVP quarterback has told his team before.
"He's all in, he's all in for the team," Flowers said of Jackson. "But what's so funny is he always tells us 'I could do everything. I could run, I could throw it, I could block. Put me at running back.' We take it as a joke, but he's actually out there trying to block. Like, [Monday] night, I ain't even know he was trying to block for me. I just seen the same color, so I just kept running. And then when I got back to the sideline, he was like, 'Hey, you should have cut back. I was trying to block for y'all.' I was like, you trying to block for me? Like, what you mean you was trying to block for me? He was like, 'Yeah, I was running next to you.' I was like, That was you running next to me?"
That's how an MVP leads. Being willing to do the dirty work for your teammates is how you get them to follow you into war. Jackson already puts his body on the line when running the ball at nearly six yards a clip. Now his teammates know that he can get others some extra yardage as well.
At least they trust he'll try.
"Oh no, I don't know if he's good at blocking, but I might follow him," Flowers said. "I trust him, I trust him enough."
Baltimore faces the Philadelphia Eagles this Sunday for a chance to take back the lead in the AFC North.
2025 NFL Draft: Baltimore Ravens scores another massive steal in recent mock draft, bolsters both lines
Baltimore Ravens strike gold in 2025 NFL mock draft
