Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has been named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month for December, after leading Baltimore to its first AFC North championship since 2012.
The Ravens were 4-1 in December and they are 6-1 since Jackson became the starting quarterback. Since 1970, only three rookie quarterbacks have won at least six of their first seven starts – Jackson, Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers (2004), and Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys (2016). Jackson, who turns 22 years old on Monday, will be the youngest quarterback in NFL history to start a playoff game Sunday when the Ravens host the Los Angeles Chargers.
In five games during December, Jackson rushed for 366 yards and three touchdowns, and completed 65 of 114 passes for 786 yards and four touchdowns. Jackson's long pass to tight end Mark Andrews for a 68-yard go-ahead touchdown was one of the key plays in Baltimore's 22-10 victory over the Chargers in Week 16. In Baltimore's Week 17 playoff-clinching win over the Cleveland Browns, Jackson scored on touchdown runs of 25 yards and eight yards, helping the Ravens reach the postseason for the first time since 2014. The Ravens also defeated the Atlanta Falcons and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in December.
Jackson finished the regular season leading all quarterbacks in rushing with 695 yards, despite starting just seven games. Robert Griffin III (815 yards in 2011) and Cam Newton (706 yards in 2011), are the only rookie quarterbacks to have rushed for more yards than Jackson.
