Ravens’ Lamar Jackson could make position change to team with Patrick Mahomes for U.S. Olympic flag football team

Once upon a time, in a dumb football dialogue land far, far away, there were people who wanted Lamar Jackson to play something other than quarterback in the NFL.

There’s a chance the two-time MVP will grant that wish after all — sort of.

With news that the NFL’s owners will allow their players to compete in flag football at the 2028 Olympics, there’s been plenty of speculation on who will represent the United States.

The choices are complicated by the very different nature of flag football, which is five-a-side and doesn’t feature linemen. 

Considering the deep pool of U.S. quarterbacks, Jackson might wind up playing a new spot: Running back.

Except in this game, that’s not exactly how it appears.

Wednesday’s print edition of the Wall Street Journal summed it up like this:

“When Jackson was coming out of college, some suggested he would need to convert to receiver in the NFL — and wound up with egg on their face when he turned into an MVP quarterback.

“For Team USA, though, Jackson wouldn’t be a traditional running back. That’s because Americans have thrived using a two-quarterback system — a setup that would take advantage of Jackson’s passing ability and game changing speed.”

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The WSJ predicts Chiefs superstar Patrick Mahomes to be the quarterback.

Since countries can only bring 10 players on their roster, versatility is key. Bringing Jackson, letting him run the ball and then also having him as a secondary passer, and a fill-in if Mahomes were to get hurt, makes a ton of sense.

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