Baker Mayfield can go up against 6-foot-5, 300-pound defensive linemen without too much of a worry, but the presence of Lamar Jackson’s mother can make him feel intimidated.
NBC’s announcers were talking on “Sunday Night Football” about the relationship between Mayfield and Jackson, whose teams were squaring off in the game.
Mayfield and Jackson got to know each other in college because they were finalists for the Heisman Trophy two straight years. Jackson, then the quarterback at Louisville, won it in 2016 and finished third in 2017. Mayfield, then the quarterback at Oklahoma, finished third in 2016 and won it in 2017.
According to Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth, Jackson invited Mayfield to come up to his suite after he won the Heisman in 2016. Mayfield took advantage of the nice offer and went to the room to hang out.
That’s when the subject of Jackson’s mother came up.
“The one thing I do remember when Baker was talking about it, he said, ‘Lamar’s mom is intimidating!’ Can you imagine a quarterback that has seen everything college football can throw at (you), and what he’s most afraid of is Lamar Jackson’s mom going in the room,” Collinsworth said.
Tirico then added some context. He said that Jackson invited Mayfield to train with him in Florida. Mayfield asked what the training was about and decided he didn’t want any part of it, calling it “pretty tough.”
Our interpretation is that Mayfield may have learned more about the planned regimen, which may have involved strictness from Jackson’s mother.
“Gives you an idea of what has made Lamar so special,” Tirico concluded.
Some might take the comment negatively on the surface, but it’s a compliment to Jackson’s mother when you understand the context; Jackson’s mother, Felicia Jones, has a reputation for being tough, in a good way.
Jones serves as Jackson’s business manager and represents him for contract talks. She was termed by SI as “fiercely private” and declines interview requests. SI’s story about her says she once called up Bobby Petrino in Louisville to put him in check about what position Jackson would play for the team. SI said Jones would conference call with Jackson and his college teammates after games and provide constructive criticism, unafraid to call out their mistakes.
Jones sounds like a tough woman who helped make Jackson who he is. Maybe her toughness/strictness was more than Mayfield could handle.
More must-reads: