Bo Jackson was expected to become one of the greatest athletes we’ve seen in the last 30 or 40 years and he did it at some level. The former NFL running back knew how to be successful not only on the gridiron but the diamond, playing in both the NFL and the MLB during his best years.
He’s still regarded as one of the best talents we’ve seen in the history of American sports after the good things he showed during his active days. Well, Jackson believes he could be dominant in today’s NFL given how the game is played nowadays.
Bo apparently isn’t impressed with what he’s seeing in the league right now and claimed he wouldn’t have competition if he was still playing. Jackson only played four years with the then Los Angeles Raiders, but he made sure to leave his mark on the game and he’s sure he would be even better playing today.
Bo Jackson says he would dominate in today’s NFL
The 57-year-old made an appearance on Deion Sanders’ podcast to discuss a variety of topics and he didn’t miss the chance to talk about how good he believes he would have been if he was playing in this era.
“Nobody wrap up and tackles no more,” Jackson said. “With me being a ball carrier, my coach taught us, number one, he said, ‘I know you can run, but I’m gonna teach you how to carry that football.’ He said, ‘that football is like your newborn baby, don’t ever put it on the ground. And keep it away from the enemy.’ It’s like this – and I watch technique – I don’t see nobody hitting or wrapping up. Everybody’s running into each other and trying to use their shoulder pads to knock the ball carrier down. And I’m like, if I played during this era, man, I’d be averaging 350-400 yards a game … because nobody wraps up anymore. They run into each other with their pads.”
During his time with the Raiders, he posted some interesting numbers, rushing for 2,782 yards and 16 touchdowns with average yards per carry of 5.4. He was also good on air, catching 40 passes for 352 yards and two touchdowns during his short-lived yet impressive career.
He played in the NFL until 1991 when he picked up a career-ending hip injury. He is still regarded as one the best multi-sport athletes in history but saying this is certainly a stretch for the former running back.
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