Stopping Lamar Jackson starts with knowing what he can do once the play breaks down. The Saints now have another meeting with Jackson, and their defensive approach comes down to staying disciplined and making sure each player handles his assignment.

The New Orleans Saints have already seen that firsthand. Jackson made his only career start against New Orleans in 2022, when Baltimore came away with a 27-13 win. He threw for 133 yards and a touchdown while adding 82 yards on the ground.

“So you have a plan of attack in terms of how your rush plan is and then how your coverage kind of coincides with that,” Defensive Coordinator Christian Parker said on September 18.

Jackson's ability to run makes him different from a traditional pocket passer. He has 6,562 rushing yards in his career, the most ever by an NFL quarterback, along with 36 rushing touchdowns.

“Yeah, I think it's just awareness of your job. If you have contain, we got to keep contained. We have to not chase plays,” Parker told the reporters on September 18.

Jackson is coming off a strong Week 1 performance against Indianapolis. He threw for 324 yards and a touchdown and added 40 rushing yards and another score in Baltimore's 41-23 win.

“Different guys manage differently in terms of how they are using their mobility, whether it's the zone-read game, whether it's scrambles to the left, to the right, B-gap escapes, all the things,” Parker added.

New Orleans will have to keep its focus against both threats when the Ravens come to M&T Bank Stadium.

The Saints have their plan in place, but Jackson’s history against NFC teams shows why executing it will be important on Sunday.

Could Lamar Jackson’s NFC record trouble the Saints?

Lamar Jackson has been tough to beat when facing NFC teams, and the New Orleans Saints are his next test.

The Ravens quarterback enters Sunday’s matchup with a 25-3 record against NFC opponents. Overall, Jackson is 77-31 as a starter, but his 89.3% winning percentage against the NFC stands out.

“It’s happened too often to be a fluke,” analyst Mike Florio wrote on NBC Sports.

Jackson has thrown 52 touchdown passes against nine interceptions in those 28 NFC games. He will also face four NFC South teams this season, beginning with New Orleans.

One possible reason for that success is how rarely NFC teams get to see Jackson. Most of them face him only once every four years during the regular season, which leaves less experience to draw from when trying to contain him.

“Not that they don’t have a plan. But it’s one thing to have a plan. It’s another to implement it,” Florio added.

The Saints will now have their opportunity to put their preparation to the test against Jackson on Sunday.

Written by

Debanjali Rakshit