Post by Purple Pain on Sept 16, 2022 14:37:11 GMT -6
Lewis: Justin Jefferson, his wide receiver ‘sensei’ and the art of running silky-smooth routes
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Fantastic read at the link above.
The perfect description of Justin Jefferson’s route running is tucked inside one specific video on the internet.
The video, released by the NFL Network in August, begins with several Jefferson receptions then transitions to comments from opposing defenders.
About 50 seconds in, the camera focuses on Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu, who sits in silence, shakes his head in awe and unleashes a line that would pass for poetry in the NFL.
“I mean, he’s just so slippery, man,” Mathieu says of Jefferson. “Like, his route running, I would describe it as silk.”
Mathieu, in the video, pinches his thumb and index finger together as if he’s gripping a handkerchief, raises his fingers above his head and waves them gently back and forth.
“If you just hold silk in the wind and watch it just blow,” Mathieu said, smiling, “he’s like that. Every time I see him run a route, the defender is so far away from him. Like he’s an illusion.”
After Jefferson’s nine-catch, 184-yard shredding of their defense Sunday, the Packers secondary would have to agree. Jefferson is special. In how he drifts through coverage. In how he cuts in the middle of routes. And in how, once the ball is caught, he slices through space to eat up further yardage.
The 23-year-old Jefferson is able to do things with his body that most other receivers simply cannot. These abilities also reside in many of the best wide receivers in NFL history — a group of pass catchers that, as numbers like his 94.1 yards per game (the most of any receiver in NFL history who has played 34 games) bear out, Jefferson is tracking toward joining.
The roots of these abilities lie partially in genetics. Jefferson is the son of John, a former college basketball player, and brothers of Jordan and Rickey, who also played football at LSU.
Yet there’s another important factor, a commonality Jefferson has with some of the NFL’s most technically savvy receivers: He has worked for years with Jerry Sullivan.
Say Sullivan’s name to Larry Fitzgerald, Isaac Bruce, Anquan Boldin, Herman Moore and others, and they’ll nod their heads convincingly about the now-78-year-old who coached wide receivers in the NFL for three decades. One high-level Division I head coach called Sullivan “the GOAT” of wide receiver coaching. Another called him “Sensei.”
“Everywhere he’s gone, he’s made guys better,” Fitzgerald said of Sullivan years ago. “Every single place he’s at, whatever he has ingredients-wise, he’s like a great chef. He doesn’t know what ingredients he has, but the gourmet meal is coming out. … He’s the best chef in the business.”
Sullivan, to stick with Fitzgerald’s metaphor, has been cooking with Jefferson for years. The resulting flavors are of the quality that defensive coordinators will not be able to ignore.
The video, released by the NFL Network in August, begins with several Jefferson receptions then transitions to comments from opposing defenders.
About 50 seconds in, the camera focuses on Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu, who sits in silence, shakes his head in awe and unleashes a line that would pass for poetry in the NFL.
“I mean, he’s just so slippery, man,” Mathieu says of Jefferson. “Like, his route running, I would describe it as silk.”
Mathieu, in the video, pinches his thumb and index finger together as if he’s gripping a handkerchief, raises his fingers above his head and waves them gently back and forth.
“If you just hold silk in the wind and watch it just blow,” Mathieu said, smiling, “he’s like that. Every time I see him run a route, the defender is so far away from him. Like he’s an illusion.”
After Jefferson’s nine-catch, 184-yard shredding of their defense Sunday, the Packers secondary would have to agree. Jefferson is special. In how he drifts through coverage. In how he cuts in the middle of routes. And in how, once the ball is caught, he slices through space to eat up further yardage.
The 23-year-old Jefferson is able to do things with his body that most other receivers simply cannot. These abilities also reside in many of the best wide receivers in NFL history — a group of pass catchers that, as numbers like his 94.1 yards per game (the most of any receiver in NFL history who has played 34 games) bear out, Jefferson is tracking toward joining.
The roots of these abilities lie partially in genetics. Jefferson is the son of John, a former college basketball player, and brothers of Jordan and Rickey, who also played football at LSU.
Yet there’s another important factor, a commonality Jefferson has with some of the NFL’s most technically savvy receivers: He has worked for years with Jerry Sullivan.
Say Sullivan’s name to Larry Fitzgerald, Isaac Bruce, Anquan Boldin, Herman Moore and others, and they’ll nod their heads convincingly about the now-78-year-old who coached wide receivers in the NFL for three decades. One high-level Division I head coach called Sullivan “the GOAT” of wide receiver coaching. Another called him “Sensei.”
“Everywhere he’s gone, he’s made guys better,” Fitzgerald said of Sullivan years ago. “Every single place he’s at, whatever he has ingredients-wise, he’s like a great chef. He doesn’t know what ingredients he has, but the gourmet meal is coming out. … He’s the best chef in the business.”
Sullivan, to stick with Fitzgerald’s metaphor, has been cooking with Jefferson for years. The resulting flavors are of the quality that defensive coordinators will not be able to ignore.
...
The first time they met, Jefferson had no idea how much wisdom the old man with gray hair would bestow upon him. But he did know that Sullivan believed in him in a way that, several years later, feels divine.
When LSU’s training camp ended in 2017, Sullivan, who was then a consultant for Orgeron, returned to his home in Jacksonville, Fla. Five weeks into the season, LSU lost to Troy and stood 3-2.
That night, around midnight, Sullivan’s phone rang. It was Orgeron. He wanted Sullivan back with the team.
He obliged, serving as an analyst who helped coach the Tigers’ older receivers like D.J. Chark and Russell Gage. He also worked with Jefferson, who only played two games that season.
The next spring, Orgeron hired Sullivan full time as LSU’s passing game coordinator, charged primarily with aiding the development of Jefferson and freshmen Ja’Marr Chase and Terrace Marshall.
Jefferson started in the season opener against highly ranked Miami and caught five of quarterback Joe Burrow’s 11 completions on the day. The Tigers won 33-17. Jefferson worked as an outside receiver most of the season, racking up 54 catches for 875 yards (16.2 yards per reception) and six touchdowns.
Sullivan continued to laud Jefferson’s route-running skills, including his ability to “nod.”
“A slight change of direction without losing speed,” Sullivan said. “Not everybody can do it. You’ve got to have flexibility to do it.”
Jefferson’s attention to detail further validated Sullivan’s initial impression. He evaluated Jefferson daily and noticed how he carried himself in meeting rooms with his fellow receivers. Jefferson’s ceiling continued to rise. Sullivan told him, “The better you get, the better you have to be.” Jefferson absorbed that thought.
“He’s a mentally tough kid,” Sullivan said. “The kind of guy you can’t beat down. He won’t do it. And I loved that about him. I loved his spirit.”
After the 2018 season, Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury hired Sullivan and brought him back to the NFL. From a distance, Sullivan saw LSU move Jefferson to the slot, where he caught 111 passes for 1,540 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2019.
Still, some NFL evaluators questioned Jefferson’s potential to be a No. 1 receiver. Bob McGinn’s reporting from 2020 supports that notion. Sullivan said NFL executives and scouts contacted him with questions, and his response was succinct: “This guy right here is a ballplayer.”
Sullivan also gushed about Jefferson’s ability to receivers on the Cardinals.
“We watched Justin when Justin won the national championship, and Jerry is like, ‘Larry, I’m telling you. This guy is special,'” Fitzgerald recalled. “As soon as he hit the ground that rookie year with the Vikings, he came out guns blazing. I was like, ‘Man, Jerry. You never lie.’ And he was so proud.”
“You’ve got to know him and how he’s put together mentally,” Sullivan said of Jefferson’s success.
He knows better than most. Even now.
When LSU’s training camp ended in 2017, Sullivan, who was then a consultant for Orgeron, returned to his home in Jacksonville, Fla. Five weeks into the season, LSU lost to Troy and stood 3-2.
That night, around midnight, Sullivan’s phone rang. It was Orgeron. He wanted Sullivan back with the team.
He obliged, serving as an analyst who helped coach the Tigers’ older receivers like D.J. Chark and Russell Gage. He also worked with Jefferson, who only played two games that season.
The next spring, Orgeron hired Sullivan full time as LSU’s passing game coordinator, charged primarily with aiding the development of Jefferson and freshmen Ja’Marr Chase and Terrace Marshall.
Jefferson started in the season opener against highly ranked Miami and caught five of quarterback Joe Burrow’s 11 completions on the day. The Tigers won 33-17. Jefferson worked as an outside receiver most of the season, racking up 54 catches for 875 yards (16.2 yards per reception) and six touchdowns.
Sullivan continued to laud Jefferson’s route-running skills, including his ability to “nod.”
“A slight change of direction without losing speed,” Sullivan said. “Not everybody can do it. You’ve got to have flexibility to do it.”
Jefferson’s attention to detail further validated Sullivan’s initial impression. He evaluated Jefferson daily and noticed how he carried himself in meeting rooms with his fellow receivers. Jefferson’s ceiling continued to rise. Sullivan told him, “The better you get, the better you have to be.” Jefferson absorbed that thought.
“He’s a mentally tough kid,” Sullivan said. “The kind of guy you can’t beat down. He won’t do it. And I loved that about him. I loved his spirit.”
After the 2018 season, Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury hired Sullivan and brought him back to the NFL. From a distance, Sullivan saw LSU move Jefferson to the slot, where he caught 111 passes for 1,540 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2019.
Still, some NFL evaluators questioned Jefferson’s potential to be a No. 1 receiver. Bob McGinn’s reporting from 2020 supports that notion. Sullivan said NFL executives and scouts contacted him with questions, and his response was succinct: “This guy right here is a ballplayer.”
Sullivan also gushed about Jefferson’s ability to receivers on the Cardinals.
“We watched Justin when Justin won the national championship, and Jerry is like, ‘Larry, I’m telling you. This guy is special,'” Fitzgerald recalled. “As soon as he hit the ground that rookie year with the Vikings, he came out guns blazing. I was like, ‘Man, Jerry. You never lie.’ And he was so proud.”
“You’ve got to know him and how he’s put together mentally,” Sullivan said of Jefferson’s success.
He knows better than most. Even now.
...
In this instance and others Sunday, Jefferson flowed through the Green Bay coverage like silk.
Like Fleck, Fitzgerald could identify Sullivan-isms in Jefferson’s releases against press coverage and how he runs out- and in-breaking routes.
“We worked hours and hours on those things,” Fitzgerald said. “He’s perfected it way quicker than I was able to.”
How so?
“He’s like Elastic Man,” Sullivan said. “He sticks his foot one way and goes another. He has great change of direction. Just a very gifted guy.”
Kirk Cousins has Justin Jefferson, Aaron Rodgers has no one as Vikings stake their claim
After Sunday’s 23-7 win, Sullivan texted Jefferson.
To congratulate him, for one.
But also to remind him of the guiding principle that will define this season and many more.
“The better you get, the better you have to be.”
Like Fleck, Fitzgerald could identify Sullivan-isms in Jefferson’s releases against press coverage and how he runs out- and in-breaking routes.
“We worked hours and hours on those things,” Fitzgerald said. “He’s perfected it way quicker than I was able to.”
How so?
“He’s like Elastic Man,” Sullivan said. “He sticks his foot one way and goes another. He has great change of direction. Just a very gifted guy.”
Kirk Cousins has Justin Jefferson, Aaron Rodgers has no one as Vikings stake their claim
After Sunday’s 23-7 win, Sullivan texted Jefferson.
To congratulate him, for one.
But also to remind him of the guiding principle that will define this season and many more.
“The better you get, the better you have to be.”
Fantastic read at the link above.
... and neither is this Chris guy.