DeSean Jackson is fast, as evidenced by many things. It’s easy for me to tell you that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ biggest offseason addition brings some speed to the table, but it’s a lot more convincing if I show you.
So, let’s do that. By checking out the above video of his highlights from last year—not years ago at his peak, but 29-year-old DeSean Jackson blowing by defenders like they’re not even there.
There’s one way you can really tell that Jackson is fast, though: he has to adjust to the ball in the air, and never has any problem getting there. Check out the catch at 1:05 in particular—in the replay you can see him blocking off the trailing cornerback by moving in front of him, then adjusting to the inside to gain separation and a clear catching window.
In fact, those kinds of adjustments are all over that tape. It’s really striking how poorly-thrown a lot of these passes are: Jackson often has oceans of space and still has to wait for the ball, slow down to get it, move towards a defender, or make an acrobatic move to keep his feet in-bounds.
That’s going to be a massive benefit for Jameis Winston, too. Jackson isn’t just fast, he’ll adjust to Winston’s passes—which is going to be necessary, because Winston has some work to do on his deep ball, judging by the team’s previous two seasons.
Anyway: watch those highlights. Get excited. Because that’s who the Bucs have now.