Lamar Jackson's scrambling wizardry led to an absurd TD against the Lions

In today’s NFL, few things match the magic Lamar Jackson can create when he scrambles in or outside of the pocket. He is, quite simply, a wizard with the ball in his hands who lets few broken plays die at first blush. The Detroit Lions learned this in devastating fashion during their litmus test game with the Baltimore Ravens.

With Baltimore already up 7-0 after an emphatic opening scoring drive, Jackson had his Ravens seeking more rather quickly. Not even Aidan Hutchinson — who had multiple shots at Jackson — would stop him on the below third-and-short, where Jackson created at least seven additional seconds for himself.

With that kind of time, it’s no wonder Nelson Agholor eventually came wide open:

.@Lj_era8's pocket presence is so impressive.

: #DETvsBAL on FOX
: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/iTs8HMaXlh pic.twitter.com/SqFouzT1Hu

— NFL (@NFL) October 22, 2023

If that play seemed routine even for someone like Jackson, it assuredly wasn’t. According to Next Gen Stats, Jackson created 9.24 seconds on the throw — the longest time to throw on a touchdown pass in seven years:

Lamar Jackson's time to throw of 9.24 seconds on his 12-yd TD to Nelson Agholor is the longest on a touchdown pass since Week 14, 2018, and the 3rd-longest in the NGS era (since 2016).#DETvsBAL | #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/7rjx6NdiSd

— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) October 22, 2023

It’s plays and overall performances like this — Jackson has been actively tearing apart the Lions all afternoon — that make it clear the superstar quarterback is en route to another potential MVP campaign. Any part of his resume and highlight reel probably starts and ends with this scrambling touchdown.