On a day when Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson didn’t feel like he was running at full speed — despite being clocked at over 21 miles per hour — he achieved a historic feat: becoming the NFL’s all-time leading rushing quarterback.
In a dominant 31-2 Christmas Day victory over the Houston Texans, Jackson surpassed Michael Vick for the most career rushing yards by a quarterback. With 87 rushing yards in the game, Jackson now has 6,110 career rushing yards, one more than Vick’s total of 6,109.
Jackson broke the record with a 6-yard run in the third quarter, which set up a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mark Andrews.
“It feels unreal, to be honest with you,” Jackson said. “I’m grateful because that’s a record that’s been there for a long time. Michael Vick is one of my favorite players. That’s just dope.”
Vick had held the record for 13 years, after surpassing Randall Cunningham in October 2011.
The speed at which Jackson broke the record is particularly impressive. Vick took 143 games over 13 years to achieve his total, while Jackson reached the milestone in just 102 games over seven seasons.
“That kind of speaks for itself,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “I’ve seen a lot of great plays from Lamar Jackson. I told him I was proud of him. I’m proud of him for all the things that go into making great plays and all the things he’s overcome along the way.”
Jackson’s performance also helped the Ravens (11-5) move one step closer to repeating as AFC North champions. With the Ravens up 17-2 in the third quarter, Jackson ran for a 48-yard touchdown without being touched, hitting a top speed of 21.25 mph, the fastest of his career. When told of his speed, Jackson joked, “For real? I was jogging.”
This season, Jackson has run less than in previous years, averaging 8.4 rushing attempts per game — the first time he’s been under 9. On Wednesday, however, he reminded everyone of his ability to make an impact with his legs, rushing for 87 yards on just four carries, including the 48-yard touchdown, which was the third-longest run of his career.
Jackson has now totaled four rushing touchdowns of 40 yards or more, tying Kordell Stewart for the most by any quarterback since 1950.
“I’ve never seen someone run the ball like Lamar at quarterback, or honestly any other position,” said Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley. “The effortless nature of the way he runs the ball and makes defenders look slow — I’m impressed by everything he does every day.”
While it was a historic day for Jackson, it wasn’t flawless. Earlier in the week, he mentioned watching Beyoncé’s halftime show at NRG Stadium, but he was nowhere to be found on the field during the performance.
“I was locked in,” Jackson said. “I was in here in the locker room preparing for the second half.”
