Eddie Jackson has quite the nose for the endzone. The former Crimson Tide star seems to get his hand on a ball nearly every week.
Through 30 regular season games, Jackson has six defensive touchdowns, only three away from tying former cornerback Charles “Peanut” Tillman for most in Bears history. For context, Tillman played 156 games in a Bears uniform.
Now, Jackson’s stepping up as a leader on the defense and teaching his teammates to go big or go home when it comes to fumbles and interceptions.
Appearing on the LoHo Daily Podcast with 670 the Score’s Laurence Holmes, Jackson explained his mindset when he creates a turnover and how he’s working to instill the same instincts in his teammates.
“Coming out of college, I was never the type of safety to catch a million picks and just get down and go out of bounds,” Jackson told Holmes. “Right now, we’re teaching that to everyone on the defense. When we get a turnover, don’t think of going out of bounds, don’t think going down, think touchdowns. If you think bigger outcomes, bigger things are going to happen.”
Jackson also explained how he wants everyone to find a player to block once a defender possesses the ball and make it their mission to help them find their way to the endzone.
Jackson has been one of the biggest catalysts in the Bears defensive resurgence over the past two seasons. Prior to his arrival, the Bears ranked dead last in takeaways.
They rose to the top of the league last season with 27, the most of any team since 2013. The team also found the endzone six times in 2018, doubled the amount from 2017.
With Jackson teaching the defense his ways, they’re hoping to continue the upward trend into 2019.
