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Why did NFL teams pass on Lamar Jackson? How Ravens landed QB in 2018 NFL draft

jacob camenker, usa today
·7 min read

The 2017 NFL draft gave the league Patrick Mahomes, but the 2018 NFL draft class is one that will be remembered as one of the most impactful of the 2010s.

There was plenty of fanfare surrounding the first round in 2018. It was generally viewed as a strong draft class, and it was particularly loaded with quality signal callers.

Baker Mayfield; Sam Darnold; Josh Allen; Josh Rosen; all of these players looked like potential franchise quarterbacks, and teams took notice. They all ended up being top-10 selections and were expected to lead their respective teams for years to come.

Lamar Jackson drew a similar billing and was considered a potential Michael Vick-like star for the next level. However, unlike his counterparts, he didn't go in the top 10. He slipped to the end of the first round where the Baltimore Ravens traded up to select him in the hopes of making him Joe Flacco's successor.

That plan panned out, as Jackson quickly developed into a quality starter and was named the NFL's MVP twice in his first six seasons.

2024 NFL MVP: Ravens QB Lamar Jackson wins award for second time

Why then did Jackson – who is arguably the 2018 class' most accomplished quarterback – fall to the end of the first round? It had a lot to with his NFL talent evaluators viewing Jackson as a boom-or-bust prospect.

Lamar Jackson scouting report

Jackson was widely admired for the athletic ability he showed at Louisville in the lead-up to the 2018 NFL Draft. His ability to make throws on the run and scramble for yardage had many dreaming he could be the next, great dual-threat quarterback at the NFL level.

Jackson racked up accolades during his college days, winning the Heisman Trophy for the 2016 season and totaling more than 5,000 yards in each of his final two seasons at Louisville. He threw for 3,660 yards, 27 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in his final college campaign while adding 1,601 yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground.

Why did Lamar Jackson fall in the draft?

That said, there was one notable stat that stood out as a potential problem for Jackson. He completed just 59.1 percent of his passes during his final college season and just 57 percent total for his college career. It's rare for quarterbacks to significantly improve their accuracy and efficiency at the NFL level so Jackson's "tendency to miss on simple throws," as NFL.com's Lance Zierlein put it, was a concern some talent evaluators had.

That's also why a select few – like former Indianapolis Colts general manager and ESPN talent Bill Polian – argued that Jackson should move to receiver at the NFL level.

"Short and a little bit slight," Polian said of Jackson on ESPN before the 2018 NFL draft, per ProFootballTalk. "Clearly, clearly not the thrower that the other guys are. The accuracy isn't there."

Few agreed with Polian's take, though Jackson revealed on one of the Ravens' podcasts that the Los Angeles Chargers asked him to work out as a receiver at the 2018 NFL Combine.

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Jackson also quelled some of the concerns about his size by measuring at 6-2, 216 pounds, though many wondered whether he would actually play at that weight in the NFL. That was a concern of talent evaluators who worried Jackson's tendency not to slide would result in him being oft-injured at the NFL level.

Those concerns were ultimately enough for Jackson to earn a Round 1-2 grade from NFL.com's Lance Zierlein despite Jackson earning a Michael Vick comparison. Zierlein's reasoning for the grade?

"Evaluating Jackson against the NFL standards for the position will cause him to come up short," he wrote. "However, he has rare speed and athleticism and can single-handedly win games. Jackson's accuracy is clearly spotty and teams must decide the level of accuracy they are willing to live with relative to his ability to create explosive plays."

"He has star potential," Zierlein added, "but his success will rest heavily upon his ability to stay healthy."

Jackson has lived up to that star potential and exceeded expectations, as he has been able to improve his accuracy while largely remaining on the field during his NFL career. His ability to do so has turned him into one of the steals from the 2018 NFL draft class.

When was Lamar Jackson drafted?

Jackson was selected with the 32nd pick in the 2018 NFL draft. It was the last selection in the first round and the Ravens acquired it via trade from the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Ravens passed on Jackson once – they selected tight end Hayden Hurst from South Carolina with the No. 21 overall pick – but the team's brain-trust always envisioned trading up to get Jackson with a second, first-round pick if they could.

Then-Ravens assistant general manager Eric DeCosta noted that Jackson's "dynamic qualities" contributed to their confidence in him as a prospect.

"As we spent more time with him, things that stand out with him: competitiveness, humility, drive, all those factors that we believe in in players," DeCosta told Ravens.com after the draft. "He was a guy that we thought was a great combination of intangibles and physical ability."

RAVENS: John Harbaugh says Lamar Jackson will go down as 'greatest quarterback' in NFL history

Quarterbacks selected before Lamar Jackson

Jackson was the fifth quarterback selected in the 2018 NFL draft. Four signal-callers were selected ahead of him, and all went in the top 10. They were as follows:

Of the four, only Allen remains with his original team at the start of the 2024 NFL season. Mayfield and Darnold are both playing for their fourth team while Rosen, who played for seven, has not been on an NFL roster since 2022.

2018 NFL draft first-round picks

Below is a full look at the players selected in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

  • 1. Cleveland Browns: Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma

  • 2. New York Giants: Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State

  • 3. New York Jets: Sam Darnold, QB, USC

  • 4. Cleveland Browns: Denzel Ward, CB, Ohio State

  • 5. Denver Broncos: Bradley Chubb, EDGE, NC State

  • 6. Indianapolis Colts: Quenton Nelson, G, Notre Dame

  • 7. Buffalo Bills: Josh Allen, QB, Wyoming

  • 8. Chicago Bears: Roquan Smith, LB, Georgia

  • 9. San Francisco 49ers: Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame

  • 10. Arizona Cardinals: Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA

  • 11. Miami Dolphins: Minkah Fitzpatrick, S, Alabama

  • 12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Vita Vea, DT, Washington

  • 13. Washington Commanders: Daron Payne, DT, Alabama

  • 14. New Orleans Saints: Marcus Davenport, EDGE, UTSA

  • 15. Oakland Raiders: Kolton Miller, OT, UCLA

  • 16. Buffalo Bills: Tremaine Edmunds, LB, Virginia Tech

  • 17. Los Angeles Chargers: Derwin James, S, Florida State

  • 18. Green Bay Packers: Jaire Alexander, CB, Louisville

  • 19. Dallas Cowboys: Leighton Vander Esch, LB, Boise State

  • 20. Detroit Lions: Frank Ragnow, C, Arkansas

  • 21. Cincinnati Bengals: Billy Price, C, Ohio State

  • 22. Tennessee Titans: Rashaan Evans, LB, Alabama

  • 23. New England Patriots: Isaiah Wynn, OT, Georgia

  • 24. Carolina Panthers: D.J. Moore, WR, Maryland

  • 25. Baltimore Ravens: Hayden Hurst, TE, South Carolina

  • 26. Atlanta Falcons: Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama

  • 27. Seattle Seahawks: Rashaad Penny, RB, San Diego State

  • 28. Pittsburgh Steelers: Terrell Edmunds, S, Virginia Tech

  • 29. Jacksonville Jaguars: Taven Bryan, DT, Florida

  • 30. Minnesota Vikings: Mike Hughes, CB, UCF

  • 31. New England Patriots: Sony Michel, RB, Georgia

  • 32. Baltimore Ravens: Lamar Jackson, QB, Louisville

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lamar Jackson draft class: Why QB fell to Ravens at end of Round 1