Eddie Jackson was a frustrated man throughout the first 11 games of 2019. While he was playing well in terms of his run defense and pass rushing, his inability to get any interceptions was something he struggled to figure out. There were a number of times he came close but for whatever reason, the ball just wouldn’t bounce his way. People started to get on him about this fact, even if it wasn’t in his control much of the time.
Those frustrations finally came to an end on Thanksgiving. Defending a 24-20 lead, the Lions faced a 4th and 22 with just seconds remaining after a Roquan Smith sack. Rookie QB David Blough took one last shot towards the end zone but Jackson wasn’t about to let that happen. He tracked the ball in the air perfectly and picked the pass off to put the game away. It came way late than he’d hoped, but Jackson had his first interception.
The best part about it was his thought process right after the play. He told Adam Jahns of The Athletic and others he almost took a different approach.
“It was a free one,” Jackson said. “I really wanted to score it. But I did the right thing.”
It still counts, though, right?
“It’s all right, yeah,” Jackson said.
Eddie Jackson hasn’t really changed at all
Nobody is better in the NFL right now at turning defense into instant offense than Jackson. He leads the league in defensive touchdowns dating back to 2017. So it’s only natural the guy was thinking about putting an exclamation point on the game by taking it all the way back. However, he decided against it and instead just went down. The game was over. Why risk injury or giving the ball back to Detroit by going for the score?
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Don’t forget the last time he chose to do be aggressive like that in a similar situation was against the Packers last season. He intercepted Aaron Rodgers in the end zone to preserve the lead and the win, but decided to bring it out. When he got tackled, his ankle got twisted up on the turf. The injury knocked him out for the rest of the year and he wasn’t able to be there in the playoffs. It’s possible that was in the back of his mind after this interception.
A good thing. Still, it’s great to know that he’s always thinking aggressively whenever he gets his hands on the football.
