BALTIMORE — Containing Lamar Jackson has been virtually impossible for opposing defenses this season, and now the task falls on the Tennessee Titans to find a way to slow down a versatile quarterback who is equally adept at running the ball and throwing downfield.
“Other than try to tie his shoelaces together, not many people have had success,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel acknowledged.
The top-seeded Baltimore Ravens (14-2) bring a 12-game winning streak and the most productive offense in the NFL into Saturday’s AFC playoff game against the Titans (10-7), who advanced by beating New England, 20-13, last week.
Tennessee’s hope of pulling off another upset rests upon keeping Jackson in check. The former Heisman Trophy winner has become an unstoppable force in his second NFL season, running for 1,206 yards — most by a quarterback in NFL history — and throwing 36 touchdown passes.
Jackson is the main component on a team that ranked No. 1 with 531 points and set an NFL record with 3,296 yards rushing. Asked if he had ever seen a club run the ball so effectively, Vrabel replied: “Not in this league. It’s ridiculous. I just did the math. It took me a while.”
The Titans have a solid running game, too. Derrick Henry, the NFL’s leading rusher, is a 6-foot-3, 247-pound bruiser who throttled the Patriots for 182 yards on the ground.
“He’s like one of those guys that the kids create on Madden. You shouldn’t be that big and be able to run like he runs,” Ravens defensive coordinator Don Martindale said. “Obviously, we’re going to have to bring our lunch pail, work hat on hat and just go play football with him.”
Baltimore’s defense has no intention of backing down.
“Guys didn’t seem like they were too interested in tackling him,” Ravens safety Earl Thomas said of the Patriots. “Our mindset is a little different. We’re going to tackle him and try to swarm.”
Tennessee’s offense has flourished since Ryan Tannehill took over for struggling Marcus Mariota in Week 7. Tannehill has thrown at least one touchdown pass in 11 straight starts, and over the final 10 games of the regular season accounted for 26 total touchdowns — 22 through the air and four on the ground. Only Jackson, with 30, had more over that span.
