BALTIMORE, Md. -- Before elusive, improvisational Baltimore Ravens star quarterback Lamar Jackson took over the football game with his unique dual-threat style, he needed some time to decipher the Texans’ aggressive defensive strategy.
In the first half Saturday, it was a tight game as Jackson endured blitz after relentless blitz from Texans coach DeMeco Ryans and defensive coordinator Matt Burke as he was sacked three times while playing to a 10-10 tie by intermission
After a spicy halftime speech that included “a lot of cursing” from an an “angry,” Jackson, the Most Valuable Player lock took over the game and manufactured a 34-10 AFC divisional round playoff victory that ended the Texans’ turnaround season at M&T Bank Stadium.
The Texans had no answers for Jackson in the second half as he became the fifth player to pass for two touchdowns and run for two touchdowns in a playoff game as he joined Otto Graham, Jay Cutler, Colin Kaepernick and Cam Newton. He became the first quarterback in NFL history since 1948 to pass for two touchdowns, run for two more, gain 100 rushing yards and have a 100 passer rating or higher in a single game.
“He can run the ball, he can pass the ball and he’s accurate when he passes the ball,” Texans veteran defensive tackle Maliek Collins said inside a somber visitors locker room. “He’s hard to bring down. He’s a special player, generational player.
“Very tough, this ain’t the ideal ending. Credit to those guys, they came in and they beat us. We have something great to build on.”
Jackson completed 16 of 22 passes for 151 yards and a 121.8 passer rating. And he rushed for 100 yards on 11 carries for a 9.1 average and a long run of 23 yards.
He scampered away from pursuit.
“When it all breaks down, he has the God-given gifts to extend the play, tuck it and run and make people miss,” said defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins, Jackson’s college teammate at Louisville. “It’s hard to get a clean shot on him. A lot of running quarterbacks take hits. He’s as slippery a runner as there with the speed to outrun people.
“He’s proven time and time again he can make any throw. It’s tough. We had a good game plan. In the second half, we didn’t execute enough to get the ball back in the offense’s hands.”
The Ravens outscored the Texans 24-0 after intermission.
“Credit to Lamar,” Ryans said. “He made a ton of great plays. That’s why he’s the MVP.”
Following his fourth-quarter touchdown run, Jackson ran into the tunnel in celebration. This marks his second playoff victory out of five career playoff games. He led the Ravens to the AFC championship game, one step away from the Super Bowl.
“You know I heard that,” Jackson said of criticism of his previous playoff performances. “I don’t even got to hear it. I see it, but it is what it is. I really don’t care about what people say. Those guys just had our team’s number in the past, but it’s a different team.”
Jackson is the runaway consensus leader for MVP honors.
He has a unique game.
And he justified his five-year, $260 million contract that included $136 million guaranteed at signing.
“Lamar is a magician,” Ravens rookie wide receiver Zay Flowers said. “Like you’re going to see him there, then you’re going to see him in the end zone. So, I’ll call him a magician, because you never know where he’s going to be.”
During the first game, a 25-9 loss to open the season, the Texans did a better job against Jackson as he was intercepted once by cornerback Steven Nelson with nickel Tavierre Thomas forcing a fumble. He had no touchdowns.
This time, the former Louisville star put his talents on full display at the Texans’ expense.
“He was just himself,” Texans veteran defensive end Jonathan Greenard said. “He took what we gave him; he made plays when he needed to. I mean, a guy like that, he’s seen us already and saw how we wanted to attack him. We had his number for a little bit, and then he just started to make more plays.”
The Texans had their moments defensively against Jackson. He was blitzed a career-high 75 percent of the time by the Texans, but completed 13 of 18 passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns against the blitz, according to Next Gen Stats. In the second half, he got rid of the football in 2.25 seconds after a 3.51 second average in the first half.
By speeding up his process, Jackson ran away with the game to determine the outcome, which is what Super Bowl winning coach John Harbaugh advised him to do.
“Just had to dial in at halftime, like coach said: ‘Get the ball out quick and let the defense play us honest,’ and that’s what we did,” Jackson said. “They were having success the first half with blitzing us. They were doing their thing, but we watched a lot of film. We were prepared. We just made little mistakes protecting the blitz and getting the ball out on time. By the second half, I felt like we were doing what we were supposed to do.”
Jackson recorded a 65.6 percent success rate on dropbacks. He completed all six of those plays for 77 yards.
“We didn’t do a good job of stopping the run, I say that talking about Lamar,” linebacker Blake Cashman said. “He was able to scramble, extend drives, which led to points. They went to their DNA, which is run the football. They executed their style of play very well, and we didn’t.”
Jackson simply had too much time to operate. He created it on his own frequently. He’s the best running quarterback in the NFL since Michael Vick.
“He’s a great player,” Texans safety Jalen Pitre said. “There’s a reason why their offense thrives. They did a job today. He’s a game-changer for sure.”
None of Jackson’s skills were surprising to the Texans.
They just couldn’t slow him down.
“Nah, I mean, everyone knows what Lamar is capable of,” nickel Desmond King said. “You know he’s a threat with his legs and with his arms, and he did that today, and he did his job.”
Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken adapted to the Texans’ defense at halftime. And those adjustments made a huge difference.
“It wasn’t so much hold the ball and try to push the ball downfield, which Lamar did a good job with,” Harbaugh said. “Once Lamar was able to sit back there and just pick apart and get the ball out quick, he just did a great job with that and then took control of the game.”
The Ravens improved to 14-4 with the victory, and the Texans dropped to 11-8 after going 3-13-1 a year ago under former coach Lovie Smith.
Jackson boosted the Ravens’ lead to 24-10 with a touchdown pass to tight end Isaiah Likely. He then had an eight-yard touchdown run to extend the lead further.
Jackson rushed for 821 yards in the regular season.
“Lamar is a dog. I’ve been a fan of his since high school,” Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud said. “It’s really an honor to share the field with a player like that. He’s a generational talent, a hell of a quarterback. He can run. He can throw. He’s an underrated thrower.
“He was tossing it around in the wind today. I’m just really a fan of his. I got to talk to him after the game and to see mutual respect is love, and I appreciate that a lot. I hope the best for him and everything like that.”
Aaron Wilson is a contributor to Sports Talk 790.