Jets cornerback Lamar Jackson thoughtful after getting beat on Raiders' winning touchdown
Henry Ruggs III #11 of the Las Vegas Raiders hauls in a touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter against Lamar Jackson #38 of theJets at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Lamar Jackson heard the Jets’ defensive call and knew what it would mean. An all-out blitz, "zero" coverage and no help whatsoever.
"I mean, it’s zero," he said after playing a key role in the Jets’ shocking 31-28 loss to the Raiders on Sunday at MetLife Stadium. "It’s tough. But who am I to be like this or that? I just have to win.
"It’s tough. It’s definitely tough. I wasn’t looking for help, but I definitely was probably hoping it wasn’t on me. All I could think of us was: Not me. I don’t want to be the reason, but I was. Gotta live with it. I have to get better."
Jackson, an undrafted rookie cornerback out of Nebraska who started the season on the practice squad, faced a daunting task in the final seconds after coordinator Gregg Williams called for that blitz.
The Raiders were at the Jets’ 46-yard line, facing a third-and-10 with no timeouts and 13 seconds on the clock.
The pass rush failed to get to quarterback Derek Carr before he launched a pass down the left sideline that found Henry Ruggs III for the winning touchdown with five seconds left.
Ruggs is a rookie like Jackson, but he has a far more impressive pedigree, having been drafted 12th overall out of Alabama after running the fastest time at the scouting combine — 4.27 seconds in the 40-yard dash.
Ruggs gave Jackson a quick head fake during his route, which was more than enough to create the separation he needed.
Fourth-year safety Marcus Maye criticized Williams’ strategy after the game, but Jackson felt he did not have the stature to be making such complaints.
"That’s something that’s above my head," he said. "If Maye said it, he said it, but I just know that I can only play the call . . . I’m a rookie. I ain’t got no leverage or seniority to debate a call or ask about a call. I just have to do my job.
"I heard the call and I just have to execute it. Of course, I didn’t execute it to the best of my ability. I would have wanted to. It’s tough. But at the same time, I also know that that play’s not going to define me or my career."
Asked about the fake that Ruggs put on him, Jackson said, "At the end of the day, he’s my man. So if he runs across the field, I have to go take him, too . . . I have to just play the route. At the end of the day they executed what they put in place. We didn’t. At the end of the day, the call was the call, the play was the play.
"It sucks. But at the end of the day, it sucks the most just because of the situation. We were just coming off a big stop on defense. We could almost taste the win. It’s been a long season. We’re looking for our first win each week. Every time we feel like we can taste it, something goes left."
He added, "I’m not going to question that. I’m not going to dwell on it too long. It sucks, just because of how it happened. It’s a walk-off touchdown for a win. Of course it’s on me.
"So as a competitor, it’s going to be tough, but at the same time also I know what I can do. I know next time it ain’t going to happen next time."
Jackson said that even if he does not have as much pure speed as Ruggs, he believes he can handle him.
"I feel like I can win against anybody, Ruggs or not," he said. "I got beat. Touchdown. Game."
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
