Bell Tolls: Can Lamar Jackson, Ravens ace test? And Big Ben must put Steelers on his back
A quick glance previewing Week 2 in the NFL:
Who’s hot: Lamar Jackson. The Ravens quarterback sparked a bunch of re-assessment with his amazing opener at Miami. Derided by some when he came out of Louisville (where he threw with aplomb, too) as a runner who should switch positions, he lit it up with five TDs and a perfect 158.3 passer rating. Jackson, the NFL’s passing leader? Sure, it was one week (he’s tied for the honor with Dak Prescott) and that was a Dolphins defense shredded, but it was still under NFL conditions. Maybe all the offseason talk about the Ravens sticking with their unconventional plan to run the quarterback to daylight was a good cover for the top priority of developing Jackson as a better passer under new offensive coordinator Greg Roman. We’ll see. The next test, Sunday against the Cardinals, includes the subplot of the Ravens past (franchise sack leader Terrell Suggs returning to B’more) chasing the future.
Pressure’s on: Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers’ disastrous opener at New England was hardly all on the quarterback, but as the leader of an offense challenged to remain prolific without Antonio Brown (and before his exit, Le’Veon Bell) it illustrated just how much Roethlisberger (65.6 passer rating) needs to put his team on his back. Never mind the questions about his locker room leadership. The best way to lead is with consistent performance. Sure, with the Seahawks on tap for the home opener, he needs help. Donte Moncrief, a veteran addition envisioned to take up some of the post-Brown slack, dropped four passes in the opener. James Conner (2.1 yards per carry) was rendered invisible at New England. Young receivers like James Washington must emerge if JuJu Smith-Schuster is to blossom as a No. 1 target. Heinz Field is the perfect place for a bounce back. Or else.
Key matchup: Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs vs. Packers secondary. A litmus test for the revamped Green Bay defense comes to Lambeau Field. Thielen and Diggs are certified Packers smashers. Last season, Thielen put up a pair of 100-yard games, and Diggs averaged triple digits against Green Bay. And they combined for five TDs. In mowing down Atlanta in Week 1, Kirk Cousins threw just 10 passes as the Vikings went heavy on Dalvin Cook in rushing 38 times. It figures this week they will go more to the air — provided they can keep new Packers linebackers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith (10 combined pressures in Week 1) out of Cousins’ face.
Next man up: Adrian Peterson. Just like last year, it has taken a Derrius Guice knee injury to propel Peterson into the lead role in Washington’s backfield. Last week, Peterson didn’t have any role — he was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career, which fueled grumbles from teammates who clearly respect the Hall of Fame-credentialed back. Now, with Guice undergoing surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee (last year, he tore the ACL in his left knee in the preseason opener), Peterson is positioned to prove something against Dallas. He’s not the same back that he was in his heyday, but Peterson has a knack for showing out when counted out.
Rookie watch: Josh Jacobs. On draft day, when Jacobs was the first running back off the board with the 24th pick in the first round, Raiders coach Jon Gruden declared that the rookie had better be ready for a heavy workload. That happened on Monday night when Jacobs carried 23 times and added a 28-yard catch. He was the first rookie back since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2001 to debut with more than 100 yards from scrimmage and two TDs. Sure, it’s early, with the Chiefs on the docket for Sunday. But Jacobs never rushed 23 times in a game at Alabama and at this pace, he would log 368 carries on the season — within striking range of Eric Dickerson’s rookie-record 390 totes in 1983.
If the playoffs were today ... The Rams and Saints might be playing for another trip to the Super Bowl. We all know what happened the last time they met. Missed call. Rams Super. Rule change. The NFC title game rematch at the L.A. Coliseum on Sunday offers the Saints a chance for a bit of revenge, but it won’t make up for the setback at the Superdome — which the Saints contributed to with questionable clock management and play-calling from Sean Payton in crunch time and defensive lapses that allowed L.A. the chance for the field goal that forced overtime and the long field goal that won it. In any event, this time around the Rams defense that allowed Christian McCaffrey to strike for 209 yards in Week 1 (128 rushing, 81 on 10 receptions) had better find an answer for Alvin Kamara. And who knows? The team with the W will gain a head-to-head tiebreaker that could determine where the next NFC title game is staged.
Stomach for an upset: Eagles at Falcons. The last two times these teams met — in the 2017 NFC Divisional playoffs and last year’s season opener — the Eagles won by less than a touchdown ... and in both cases the Falcons ended the game inside Philadelphia’s 5-yard line. That’s great goal-line defense or opportunities blown in the biggest way. Both of those games were in Philly. So, perhaps the Falcons, two-point underdogs, will benefit from a change of venue ... and a change in offensive coordinator as Dirk Koetter has returned to Atlanta as Steve Sarkisian’s replacement. The red zone might be the perfect barometer in assessing whether Koetter is the difference. In the two previous matchups, the Falcons had eight drives advance inside the 20 and wound up with just two TDs, two field goals, one interception, the two game-ending failures and another drive that ended on downs. Then again, Carson Wentz wasn’t on the field, either, in the two previous encounters.
Did you notice? Opening weekend of the NFL’s 100th season marked the first time in history that four rookies — A.J. Brown (Tennessee), Marquise Brown (Baltimore), Terry McLaurin (Washington) and T.J. Hockenson (Detroit) — debuted with 100 receiving yards.
Stat’s the fact: The Titans were 0-11 against the Colts with Andrew Luck starting at quarterback. When Luck missed the entire 2017 season, Tennessee was 2-0 against Indy. It’s no wonder the Titans will host the Colts on Sunday as three-point favorites.
Follow Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell.
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