Jamison Hensley, ESPN Staff Writer 3y

Join the OG: How Lamar Jackson can crash Cam Newton's rush QB club

OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Cam Newton revitalized the run-option and designed runs for quarterbacks almost a decade ago.

Lamar Jackson revolutionized the concept of a dual-threat quarterback over the past three seasons.

Their paths converge Sunday night in New England, where Jackson can match Newton's rushing quarterback milestone in front of him. When the Baltimore Ravens play at the New England Patriots, Jackson needs 25 yards rushing to join Newton as the only quarterbacks in NFL history to run for more than 500 yards in each of their first three seasons.

This represents the first time Jackson and Newton will square off as starting quarterbacks, but it's not the first NFL meeting between these Heisman winners-turned first-round NFL quarterbacks. Jackson watched Newton dominate Baltimore in 2018, when Newton was with the Carolina Panthers and Jackson was three weeks away from taking over as the Ravens' starting quarterback. Newton has also reached out to Jackson on social media, a conversation that Jackson described as "Just game recognizes game."

"He's the 'O.G.,'" Jackson said this week. "He's Superman."

Flattered by the compliment, Newton made it known he's just as big of a fan of Jackson's.

"For him to be as successful and to make the impact -- the big splash in this game -- not many people have done it," Newton said. "I say Michael Vick, I say Lamar. I don't even think I'm in that stratosphere."

Newton doesn't just belong in the conversation of great running quarterbacks. He's actually the bridge between Vick and Jackson.

The face of the modern-day running quarterback has long been Vick. After the Atlanta Falcons made Vick the No. 1 pick of the 2001 draft, he electrified the league by weaving through tacklers and outracing everyone in the open field.

But, after Vick became the first quarterback to run for 1,000 yards in 2006, the threat of the running quarterback faded for four years. The top rushing quarterbacks from 2007 to 2010 were David Garrard, Aaron Rodgers and Jason Campbell, and their running numbers came from scrambling from pass-rushers and not quarterback jet sweeps.

It wasn't until Newton arrived in 2011 that another quarterback eclipsed 700 yards rushing. The Panthers selected him No. 1 in the 2011 draft and adopted the quarterback-driven runs Auburn used with him.

"With Cam, it was such a unique situation because of his rare traits: height, weight, speed, athleticism, power at the point of attack,” said Matt Bowen, a former NFL safety who is now an ESPN analyst. "Now, you’re getting more inside runs in addition to the zone reads and the quarterback sweeps. I’ve said over the last decade: Cam Newton is the best goal-line runner in the National Football League. You take any running back, but Cam Newton is the best goal-line runner in the NFL.”

Different styles, same impact

Newton and Jackson have different styles and statures. Jackson is a sleek 6-2, 212 pounds. Newton is an imposing 6-5, 245 pounds.

What brings Jackson and Newton together is the fact no other quarterback has had their type of production in the rushing game from the very start. Vick topped 300 yards rushing only once in his first three seasons because of limited playing time as a rookie and a fractured fibula in his third season.

In Newton's first three NFL seasons (2011-2013), he struck fear into defenses by running around and sometimes over tacklers for 2,032 yards and 28 touchdowns. Newton's 210 designed runs nearly doubled the totals of every other quarterback over that span (Robert Griffin III had 114).

In Jackson's first three seasons (2018-2020), he raised the bar a notch with juke and spin moves, totaling 2,370 yards rushing and 24 runs of 20 yards or more (only running back Nick Chubb XX during this time). Jackson's 281 designed runs are 71 more than Newton had in 18 fewer starts.

"He's a person who has took this league by storm," Newton said of Jackson. "And especially early on the doubt that came with it. We all can relate to being the second-guessed question: 'Can he play? He's got bust written all over him.' And for him to succeed through it all, man, he's a true underdog story that we all love to root for."

Newton's appreciation started when he attended Jackson's first college game, which occurred purely by accident.

In September 2015, Newton went to the Georgia Dome to watch his college team, Auburn, open the season against Louisville and left very impressed by a freshman who surprisingly got the bulk of the snaps over three more experienced quarterbacks. Jackson led Louisville in rushing with 106 yards and a touchdown and threw for 100 yards.

"I was like at him like, 'Who in the world is this kid flying around?'" Newton said. "I didn't know who he was. But he was making plays. He was so electric. But you knew he was young, and he knew he had the capabilities of being obviously what he is today if staying out of trouble and evolving his game more so less of from the neck up. And the legend of Lamar Jackson is history in the college level."

Passing it on

When Baltimore drafted Jackson in the 2018 draft, one of the first players to reach out was Newton. He told The Undefeated that he gave his phone number to then-Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome so Jackson could give him a call.

Newton didn't have many role models when he came into the NFL nine years ago. Vick was re-establishing himself in the league after nearly two years in prison, and Donovan McNabb was at the end of his career in Washington.

"I just know when I first came into the league and I knew how hard it was to kind of find the likeness so to speak and to want to chat to people or talk with people -- not saying it was hard," Newton said. "But talking to certain quarterbacks that do not have your amenities or your traits can be kind of tough. But playing quarterback, you just still get great dialogue from any person that's been in this league for a long time."

When Newton looks around the league now, there is a younger generation of gifted running quarterbacks beyond Jackson who are captivating the league.

Buffalo's Josh Allen could become the third quarterback to record more than 500 yards rushing in his first three seasons. He has rushed for 241 yards through nine games this season.

Arizona's Kyler Murray leads NFL quarterbacks in rushing with 543 yards, 74 more than Jackson. Murray, with eight rushing touchdowns, is tied with Newton for the most by a quarterback through eight games in the Super Bowl era.

Still, in his 10th season, Newton commands respect in the running game -- he has rushed for 314 yards and leads the league with 50 designed runs -- and from his peers.

In talking about Newton this week, Jackson did Newton's Superman celebration, raising both fists to his chest before pulling them backward as if he were ripping open his shirt.

"A lot of us looked up to him," Jackson said. "He won the Heisman. He won the college [football national] championship, won MVP, went to the Super Bowl. I followed him a lot. Wanted to get to where he’s at, and now I’m here. Now I’ve got to play against him. Just can’t wait to do that."

ESPN's Mike Reiss contributed to this article

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