Patriots
The Patriots passed on Jackson twice in the 2018 NFL Draft before the Ravens selected the eventual two-time MVP.
Bill Belichick’s 24 seasons as the Patriots’ head coach were mostly filled with positives, winning six Super Bowls and playing in nine of them. But the two dozen years he had in New England weren’t all perfect, making some mistakes along the way.
The former Patriots head coach admitted to some of those mistakes in his upcoming book, “The Art of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football.” Belichick dedicated a chapter in his upcoming book to the mistakes he’s made in his coaching career, with the two most notable admissions being the Patriots’ decision not to draft Lamar Jackson in 2018 and being unable to keep Tom Brady due to financial reasons, according to The Boston Globe‘s Ben Volin.
New England’s decision not to select Jackson in the first round of the 2018 draft seems like an obvious mistake years later. The Patriots passed on a quarterback who would become a two-time MVP twice, selecting offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn with the No. 23 overall pick and running back Sony Michel at No. 31. The Ravens traded up with the Eagles to get the No. 32 pick and select Jackson.
At the time, there was some debate over whether the Patriots should select a quarterback. There were rumors that they had their eyes set on a possible trade up to get Baker Mayfield and they hosted Jackson for a visit before the draft. Tom Brady was also set to turn 41 soon, with his contract situation remaining in flux over the next couple of offseasons.
In the immediate aftermath of the 2018 draft, though, the Patriots’ first-round selections were mostly praised, although ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. believed they should’ve used the Michel pick on a defensive player instead. Over the next year, Belichick’s decision to at least pick Michel over Jackson appeared to be a good call as well. The running back rushed for 931 yards and six touchdowns in the regular season as a rookie before going for 336 yards and six touchdowns in the postseason, helping New England win the Super Bowl in 2018.
Michel’s play quickly fell off following his standout rookie season. He rushed for 912 yards in 2019, but on only 3.7 yards per carry. He played in just nine games in the 2020 season due to multiple injuries, with that year being his last in New England.
Wynn, meanwhile, was marred by injury issues during his Patriots tenure. He missed his entire rookie season after tearing his Achilles in a preseason game. He only played in 43 of the 82 regular-season games during his five seasons in New England, getting moved from left tackle to right tackle by the end of his time with the team in 2022.
Jackson didn’t pop as a rookie, sitting behind Joe Flacco for most of the 2018 season before taking over late in the year. He notably struggled in their playoff loss to the Chargers, completing fewer than 50 percent of his passes.
But in Year 2, Jackson emerged as one of the league’s best quarterbacks. He arguably had one of the best years ever for a player at the position, scoring 43 total touchdowns to unanimously win MVP in 2019. That year coincided with Brady’s final season in New England, giving the Patriots a glimpse at what they could’ve seen had they selected Jackson.
Jackson’s remained one of the game’s best quarterbacks since that 2019 season, winning MVP again in 2023. Baltimore has also made it to the postseason in all but one year with Jackson as its quarterback, while New England has only made the playoffs once in the last five years, in part due to bad play at quarterback.
Of course, some would argue Belichick made some other mistakes during his time as the Patriots’ head coach that were larger than the decision not to draft Jackson. However, Belichick never mentioned Malcolm Butler’s surprise benching in Super Bowl LII, SpyGate, DeflateGate, or Aaron Hernandez, according to Volin.
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