OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Will Lamar Jackson make history once again with her legs? In Las Vegas gamblers certainly believe so.
The Baltimore Ravens quarterback’s rushing over-under of yards for the 2020 season opened at 999.5 yards in the Caesars Sportsbook.
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In 2019, Jackson set a quarterback mark in one season by running for 1,206 on his way to being the NFL’s Most Valuable Player. Either way, each of the three quarterbacks that ran for more than 900 rushing yards in one season recorded fewer than 600 in the next.
Last week, Jackson said it didn’t matter how much he ran with the ball, as long as that helped the Ravens win. He also predicted that he would not add the same number of yards rushing in 2020.
Lamar Jackson captured the attention of the entire NFL during a sensational campaign in 2019. AP Photo
“I doubt that he will run as much with the ball in the future, because we have dynamic runners and even more receivers,” Jackson said. “We are going to be very good and I don’t think I will run much.”
Jackson had similar expectations for last season, saying he hoped to run less before eventually breaking Michael Vick’s one-season mark. He has repeatedly spoken of how he enjoys shooting and famously said, “Not bad for a running back,” after adding five touchdown passes in the first game of last season.
Jackson, one of today’s most dynamic running backs, sidestepped and left defenders behind to finish the 2019 season as sixth on the rushing yards list, exceeding Las Vegas’ expectations.
Jackson’s pre-season over-under at Caesars opened at 867.5 yards, a number he surpassed in Week 12.
For ambivalent passers, recording great seasons as running back-to-back has been somewhat elusive. Randall Cunningham ran for 942 yards in 1990, but was only able to add 549 the following year; Vick ran for 902 yards in 2004, but was limited to 597 the following season.
After Vick set the rushing yard mark in one season for a quarterbacl in 2006 with 1,039, he did not play the following season after being convicted of the charges of organizing clandestine dogfights.
In 2019, Jackson’s other bet is on his over-under yards passing, which opened at 3,199.5. Last season he totaled 3,127.
If Jackson beats both bets, he would become the first player in NFL history with 3,200 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in one season.
In other bets, the highest over-unders are 4,499.5 passing yards for Patrick Mahomes, 1,249.5 passing yards for Christian McCaffrey and 1,449.5 receiving yards for Michael Thomas.
ESPN’s Ben Fawkes contributed to this report.
