The most electric play of Lamar Jackson's night was called back, but it was sure fun to watch.
Late in the first quarter, Jackson decided to scramble on third-and-10 from the Green Bay Packers' 18-yard line. From that point, Jackson turned a potentially ordinary play into a must-see moment.
After rolling to his right, Jackson took off and saw Packers cornerback Tramon Williams closing in for an attempted tackle. Jackson wasn't having that. He darted right, then left, leaving the faked-out Williams touching a piece of Jackson's uniform as he whizzed by.
"If I'm out there on the field one-on-one, I got to make you miss," Jackson said. "That's how I always played. If I get tackled by one person, I'm mad. I feel like I lost that play.
"I'm not trying to get two yards, get tackled. That's not how I play." Now Jackson smelled a touchdown as he raced toward the end zone. Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander had the angle to keep Jackson from scoring, but that was no problem for the Ravens' quarterback. As Alexander went for his legs, Jackson hurdled him, then ran into the end zone.
The Ravens' touchdown celebration was short-lived, however, due to a penalty for a blindside block on wide receiver Willie Snead IV that nullified the play.
However, the penalty didn't erase the vision of Jackson's run, part of another solid preseason performance. Jackson completed six of 10 passes for 58 yards, and he rushed twice for 14 yards. He played 22 snaps after playing 16 snaps in the preseason opener, and the Ravens drove for field goals on both of Jackson's two series before he left the game.
Jackson didn't run once during the preseason opener, and the Ravens want to be cautious with their franchise quarterback. However, Head Coach John Harbaugh had no issue with Jackson's decision to leave the pocket.
"He's going to play football," Harbaugh said. "We're not trying to run him. But sometimes, what are you going to do? You can't hold him back forever. He looked good on the play. He looked good on a lot of plays."
There are two preseason games remaining, but Jackson looks ready for Week 1. However, he wants the first-team offense to eliminate the penalties that could have turned the field goal drives into touchdown drives. The Ravens visit the Philadelphia Eagles next Thursday, and the third preseason game is usually when the starters see the most action.
"Penalties killed us, but we have to step it up next week," Jackson said. "The focus is on penalties. That's what really slowed us down from punching in on those two drives."
