Landry: Perseverance a trait Jackson has no intention of dropping

Don Landry

CFL.ca

@CFLLandry

That’s more like the Ernest Jackson we’ve come to know.

It was another loss for the Montreal Alouettes, last Saturday night, as they fell to the Ottawa REDBLACKS, 24-17. But in that loss, a ray of hope. A dose of familiarity.

Ernest Jackson had a pretty good night. That’s not something we’ve seen much of since he moved to Quebec.

“I made the best of them,” Jackson said of the five throws quarterback Johnny Manziel sent his way. Jackson caught them all, totalling 61 yards.

Since arriving in Montreal, Ernest Jackson and the Alouettes have been facing an upward climb in search of a team identity. (Dominick Gravel, Montreal Alouettes)

Jackson, the 31-year-old, seven-year veteran, had a night that more resembled the many he’d had in previous seasons before free agency brought him to Montreal. The guy who caught everything. The guy that could muster impressive yards-after-catch totals. The guy who could kick-start an offence with a clutch second down conversion.

The guy he has not really been, in a season and a half with the Alouettes.

Ernest Jackson’s time in Montreal has been frustrating, yet he remains optimistic and determined, insisting that if the ball comes his way he can still be the guy, can still make the plays that change the mood of a game in a flash. That’s what he did in Ottawa. That’s what he did in B.C.

He’s hopeful that Saturday night signalled the beginning of a beautiful relationship with Manziel, as the Alouettes hope to finally get their quarterbacking picture to come into sharp focus. If it did, then we will be seeing more of Ernest Jackson this season, in a way that we’d become accustomed to. And he can put the frustrations to rest.

A Grey Cup hero in 2016, with his juggling, heart-stopping, overtime touchdown catch – a catch that gave Ottawa its first CFL championship in forty years and capped a season in which he was not charged with a single, solitary dropped pass – Jackson took his act, through free agency, to Montreal in 2017.

And kind of disappeared.

“Disappeared” might be kind of harsh, really. With sixty catches for 767 yards and six touchdowns, Jackson’s first season with the Als would have been a decent one for lots of receivers, just not an “elite” one. Or a breakout season for one we’d never heard of previously. However, this was Ernest Jackson and CFL observers had come to expect a certain dominating feel around his presence at a football game.

That 2016 regular season saw Jackson make 88 catches for 1,225 yards and
10 touchdowns and it came on the heels of an impressive 2015 campaign, where he’d made 84 catches for 1,036 yards and 5 majors. He was a key piece of the Ottawa offensive puzzle and the same was expected in Montreal.

That’s not how it’s worked out, however, and Jackson has been dutifully plodding through the drought, trying to keep his frustrations in check.

His final year in Ottawa was Jackson’s most productive during his time in the CFL, and although the same was expected when he arrived in Montreal, continuous changes at quarterback have impacted consistency as an offence. (The Canadian Press)

“Inside, you’re steaming but you know as a teammate you can’t let that show in front of your other teammates,” Jackson said. “As a leader, you just wanna keep playing. You gotta hold whatever you’re feeling inside and you’ve got to be professional.”

“I guess it’s hard for some guys but it’s been something I’ve been doing my whole life,” said Jackson of not blowing a gasket in public fashion.
“I’ve seen it happen before, I know it’s part of the game. I guess I just have that patience and that temperament to hold things in.”

On a team that has a record of 4 and 22 since his arrival, holding things in is a bit of an accomplishment.

The CFL does not keep track of a receiver’s dropped balls, that being a very subjective kind of thing to try to total. Many teams do tally them up, for proprietary reasons, and that’s why you only really hear about a player’s dropped balls stat when it is impressive, and the team decides to publicize it.

The REDBLACKS had no problem letting us all know that Jackson hadn’t committed an unforced error as the 2016 season progressed and that only added to the drama of his juggling reception near the conclusion of the Grey Cup Game.

As for the number of drops he’s suffered in Montreal, it’s safe to say there have been a few and that the narrative of Ernest Jackson’s tenure with the Als includes anecdotal evidence that he wasn’t snagging passes in perfect fashion anymore.

That’s only a part of the story, to be fair and not even the biggest part. Because while Ernest Jackson’s receptions percentage has been lower in Montreal than it was in Ottawa – and in his final season in B.C. before that – a lot of that has to be hung on quarterback instability, both on the roster side of things and on the execution side.

This season alone, the Alouettes have used five different quarterbacks and the team’s struggles to find a permanent replacement for Anthony Calvillo since his retirement four years ago are well documented.
“Chemistry” with a quarterback has long been held to be an important ingredient for a receiver’s success. Jackson had that in Ottawa with Burris. He hasn’t had it with anyone in Montreal, partly because no one’s held the job behind centre for very long.

“Each quarterback has their own unique style and what they’re looking for from a receiver,” said Jackson, who may well see another QB throwing his way this Saturday when the Alouettes head for Edmonton. With the Als announcing that Manziel is now under concussion protocols, Antonio Pipkin has been reported to be taking first-team reps at practice this week.

If Pipkin gets the start, Jackson will have yet another pivot with which he’ll need to find the right recipe.

It’s been difficult for him to do, in Montreal, and the numbers bear it out.

Jackson’s receptions percentage came it at 69% in 2014 (with B.C.), and then 68% during his first year in Ottawa, before jumping to a whopping 79% during his splendid 2016. His first year in Montreal, the number fell to 57%. This season, it’s 54% and that number was boosted with his perfect game last Saturday night. The struggles have been real.

“There’s always gonna be some adversity and you gotta learn how to handle it and make the best of it,” said Jackson, matter-of-factly, adding that all one can do is stay focused and ready because “the moment you get frustrated and get your mind out of it is the moment the ball comes your way. And now you look horrible.”

In 2018, Jackson has been thrown at 35 times, making 19 catches for 207 yards. He has yet to find the end zone. Those numbers have him on target for the worst statistical season he’s had since breaking out with the Lions in 2014, extrapolating to 43 catches and 466 yards over a full 18 games.

Nevertheless, he is optimistic that a return to form is coming, buoyed by the connection he feels he and Manziel are cooking up. We talked the day before the Alouettes made their announcement about Manziel’s health and Jackson was feeling inspired.

“I feel super optimistic about it,” Jackson said. “I love the way he handles things and his confidence in himself and our team. He let us know ‘I’m here for you guys, all the way through the end.’ We have confidence in him and he has confidence in us.”

“It’s surely coming around and getting that chemistry with the quarterback and having that on-time thing,” said Jackson of his new relationship with Manziel, one that he believes can provide the basis for a return to more usual Ernest Jackson statistics, on a more regular basis.

Saturday night’s performance, more vintage Jackson than most any game we’ve seen him play with Montreal, had him feeling certain that the frustrating times are ending, and the limelight is about to shine on him again.

“You’re definitely gonna see that for sure,” Jackson said when asked if the big games are back for him. “Just been waiting for that moment to bust out and I think it’s been coming around.”

“And everyone’s gonna be able to see it.”

Ernest Jackson’s frustrations may have been coming to an end with the arrival of Johnny Manziel. But if Manziel misses a substantial amount of time, will those frustrations return?

If they do, Jackson will keep on keepin’ on, one would assume because it’s what he’s been doing since leaving Ottawa.

Catches, yards and touchdowns haven’t been the hallmarks of Ernest Jackson’s time in Montreal, the way they were in Ottawa.

But perseverance certainly has. It, like all the balls thrown at him in 2016, is not something he’s dropped.

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