Michael Vick was a player Lamar Jackson emulated, but the Ravens quarterback isn't taking aim at breaking his record.
Jackson needs 852 rushing yards to surpass Vick for the most career rushing yards by a quarterback. With 5,258 rushing yards, Jackson is 49 yards behind Russell Wilson and 373 rushing yards behind Cam Newton on his way to Vick.
The big difference between all those players is Jackson is still just 27 years old. Vick was still adding to his rushing totals at 35 years old.
"I'm trying to get a Super Bowl," Jackson said on "The Lounge" podcast. "If that record comes, so be it. But that's not my goal. If it happens, I'm going to cherish it. Hopefully the record [wouldn't] be broken for a long time from now, but it's not my goal."
652: Lamar Jackson Talks Super Bowl Urgency, GOAT Goals, Weight Loss, His Leadership Change & More
Two-time MVP Lamar Jackson joins Ryan Mink and Garrett Downing to also talk about what's changed in Year 2 of Todd Monken's offense, the real reason why he lost weight, his connection with the Zays, his pursuit of an all-time rushing record, and much more.
Jackson has led the Ravens in rushing yards for five consecutive seasons (ever since he took over as the Week 1 starter in 2019). That's likely to change this season with Derrick Henry joining Jackson in the backfield.
In Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken's system, Jackson's average carries per game dropped to a career-low 9.25 last season. The last time he rushed for 1,000 yards was in 2020, and he ran for 1,206 yards in his 2019 MVP season. Asked if the days of posting 1,000-yard rushing seasons are likely behind him at this point, Jackson said he'll do whatever it takes to win.
"That's how I always approached it," Jackson said. "Before, we had a run-heavy offense. We had a lot of read-options going on. Now we're throwing the ball down the field. Then we got Derrick Henry, a back that can go for 2,000 yards in a season. So, I probably won't need to use my legs as much."
With that said, Jackson dropped weight this offseason to get back closer to his 2019/2020 weights, when he produced back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing campaigns and averaged 6.6 yards per carry.
Asked for his take on Jackson's training camp, the first thing General Manager Eric DeCosta said was, "He looks fast as heck."
"Like I always say, if I get a lane, I'm trying to score," Jackson said. "I'm not trying to run and go out of bounds to fall. If I have a chance to go, I'm going to go."
