Throughout his career, Drew Brees did it. Just like Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger. Tom Brady? He turned his version of it into a branded food and product lifestyle.
They grew physically bigger and then refined them when their careers or injuries demanded it.
Now you can add Lamar Jackson to that list after the Baltimore Ravens quarterback revealed a significantly slimmer frame during Wednesday’s organized team activities.
Jackson declined to provide a specific weight, but a source close to the quarterback told Yahoo Sports that Jackson has lost “at least” 10 pounds since the end of the 2023 season and is also “significantly” less than a career-high weight in 2022. source declined to give a specific weight for Jackson in 2022, but said the peak during the calendar year was “somewhere between 230 and 240.” [pounds]at one point. Jackson’s playing weight at Louisville fluctuated between 205 and 215 pounds between his sophomore and junior seasons. He weighed in at 216 at the 2018 NFL scouting combine.
“I don’t really know how much weight I’ve lost,” Jackson said Wednesday. “I’m like two-[hundred] something right now. But I will say it was important enough to get some extra exercise, that’s all.”
He added that his goal weight had to be under 230 pounds, adding that the groomer’s physique was “just so I could be more agile and move more.”
While the adjustment may seem counterintuitive from a penalty-absorbing standpoint, it makes sense when compared to the offensive changes coordinator Todd Monken made last season. Monken’s offense deviated from the methodical pounding running game of previous coordinator Greg Roman and demanded a more up-tempo style that relied heavily on Jackson leading the decisions in the rushing attack while also making adjustments at the line of scrimmage. Gradually it became clear that a larger frame also meant a less agile runner, absorbing more punishment.
The difference now – in theory – is that Jackson should be more elusive when controlling the ball or navigating the pocket, while also not wearing out late in games while maintaining a faster pace. It also moves Jackson closer to his 2019 frame, where he posted perhaps the best season of his career in terms of production, capping the first of his two MVP seasons.
It’s worth noting that even though Jackson is still only 27, he is entering his seventh year in the league, which is often exactly the time when veteran, upper-end NFL quarterbacks begin to adjust their physiques during the early years of their careers. Brees did it with the New Orleans Saints in his 30s as a leaner player who squeezed everything out of his agility. Rodgers also began to change physically in his prime, although the weight was initially more focused on his core strength, then built leaner and stronger in his mid-to-late 30s. Brady bulked up in his prime and then began focusing on a stronger and leaner frame that focused more on flexibility than raw strength. Even Roethlisberger, who was infamous for working himself into shape over the course of the season, adopted a leaner build in his later years, which allowed him to squeeze out every move possible in his later years.
That Jackson is now on this path in Baltimore is a testament to some of the same commitments of those other quarterbacks – indicative of his drive to change and adapt his body as he sees fit. And this was something he took on himself. It wasn’t a directive from the Ravens or the product of internal opinion.
“I think that’s Lamar. He’s a professional,” Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said of Jackson’s commitment to slimming down. “He knows what he’s doing. He knows where he wants to go with this. My concern is that he is in shape, the best shape of his life, and he is working on that. He is football-technically ready, with all the details that go with it: mentally, physically, spiritually ready to go. That’s pretty much what I’m thinking about. I know he talks to the strength and conditioning people. He has his own people. He talks to [director of sports nutrition] Sara [Snyder] always. He’s a professional. He knows what he’s doing.”
How this will ultimately reflect on the Ravens offense remains to be seen, especially with the additions like veteran running back Derrick Henry and starting wideout Devontez Walker. For now, continuity at coordinator, Jackson’s personal adjustments and the development of Zay Flowers — along with Henry in the backfield — seem the most likely catalysts for a Super Bowl push that ultimately fell short in an AFC title game loss last season . to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Asked how long it took him to get over that loss on Wednesday, Jackson replied: “Now.”
“[It] It hurts more to lose before the Super Bowl than actually being a part of it because we worked so hard for 17 weeks, plus the little playoff games, and we go one game away and lose,” Jackson said. “We didn’t really put any points on the board, [when] we just scored 30 points against crazy teams, great defenses. Don’t get me wrong, that’s a great defense too [in Kansas City]But [we faced] the highest ranked defenses. We just have to finish; We have to find a way to move the ball in the right direction and put points on the board because our defense did its thing all night.”
For the teams that fall short, part of that change is what starts now, during offseason workouts. Then onto the full squad mini-camps and into the heat of training camp. Jackson started a little earlier and a little differently than expected for himself, changing some of what he brings to the table physically. Now the Ravens will have to see if it yields similar benefits as other highly successful quarterbacks who not only won Super Bowls but continued their careers into their late 30s and beyond.
