Lamar Jackson watched the Ravens' preseason opener from the sideline but count him as a fan of Titans rookie quarterback Malik Willis.
Willis is a mobile quarterback like Jackson and had some spectacular plays in the Ravens' 23-10 victory. Willis played the first half and went 6-of-11 passing for 107 yards and ran five times for 38 yards, including a 7-yard touchdown after making Ravens rookie safety Kyle Hamilton miss on a blitz.
After the game, Jackson met Willis at midfield to dap it up and offer some words of encouragement.
"I saw that throw that he made at the Combine, like a 65-yard bomb, and I told [Quarterbacks] Coach 'Urb' [James Urban], 'He has an arm on him,'" Jackson said.
"Then, I saw him in the game, he did that little spin roll to the left and went crazy. I was like, 'I like him. I like him a lot.' He's a great quarterback, and he made some down-the-field throws, too. He's going to be good in the league."
Asked if it's cool to see quarterbacks entering the league being compared to him, Jackson pointed to other quarterbacks such as Patrick Mahomes, Deshaun Watson and Kyler Murray who are also always drawing comparisons.
Willis was a dynamic runner in college, rushing for 1,822 yards over his final two seasons, but he didn't post Jackson's kind of stats. Jackson ran for 3,172 yards in his last two years at Louisville. Willis threw for 5,107 yards over that time, compared to 7,203 yards for Jackson.
The Titans drafted Willis in the third round this season. If he continues to develop like Jackson did early in his career, it's only a matter of time before the two square off in the regular season.
