Quietly, Consistently, Jammer Silencing Opponents

Mamba · Oct 16, 2008

Stride for stride with Randy Moss, maybe a step behind at times, but savvy enough to reach in and make a play at the last nanosecond against one of the toughest receivers in the league to cover, Quentin Jammer showed a national television audience Sunday night what many don't seem to know.

He's good, almost always.

“He's the most consistent guy I've had the privilege of coaching,” said Chargers secondary coach Bill Bradley.

“He's the most consistent corner in the league,” said Antonio Cromartie, a Pro Bowl corner last season.

Jammer is having perhaps his best season in a career that has in recent years evolved into one defined by steadiness, if not enough of the spectacular to get him to Hawaii even once.

“He doesn't get beat,” Cromartie said. “He makes tackles. He hasn't made a lot of interceptions, and that's why he's not in the Pro Bowl.”

That used to confound Jammer. But at 29 one of the richest Chargers and wanting a Super Bowl ring more than anything, he is now secure in his place in the game.

It's as if the better he's gotten, the less it matters to him what others think. Back when he was leading the league in defensive penalties, he openly fretted about what fans thought.

“I don't care about the recognition,” he said this week, after what he called one of his five best games in a career that spans 93 starts, including postseason. “It has been important to me. In the early years, I wanted to make the Pro Bowl and get the recognition. Now I just want to help this team win. I take pride in the fact that if you put me on a guy he's not going to catch a lot of footballs. He's not going to catch touchdowns.”

Jammer doesn't intercept a lot of passes – though he had one pick Sunday and had another taken away by a dubious officiating judgment – but he also doesn't get flat-out burned a lot. He especially doesn't get beat in the end zone, having been deemed responsible for just 10 touchdowns since the start of the 2005 season. And while his seven interceptions rank 35th among cornerbacks in that span, his 58 pass breakups rank third behind Asante Samuel and Champ Bailey.

Jammer's 11 breakups lead the league this year, and the one touchdown he was charged with by Stats, Inc., was actually the result of a safety not getting back quickly enough to pick up Greg Camarillo in Miami.

What Moss might think of Jammer could not be ascertained.

“Get away from me,” the Patriots receiver said when approached by a reporter after Sunday's game, and he declined to speak to reporters in New England on Wednesday.

So we don't know what Moss thinks about Jammer, but he probably wasn't as happy with his three catches Sunday (none on Jammer) as he was with his one catch in January's AFC Championship Game (none on Jammer).

Jammer knows what Moss probably thinks of him. It's likely the same as what opposing coaches think.

“He likes to play against the best in the league,” Buffalo coach Dick Jauron said. “He always plays at a high level, but he seems to take it up when he has big-name receivers going against him.”

That kind of praise is why Jammer was thrown at just 94 times in 2007 – fewest since he became a starter in 2003 and fewer per play than Cromartie or Drayton Florence last season.

So he's fine if Sunday's game doesn't help him to his first Pro Bowl, oesn't make him appreciated by fans everywhere. He's getting ready to face another big-time receiver in Buffalo's Lee Evans, who is averaging 27 yards a catch.

“It doesn't mean a lot, because that's me,” Jammer said. “I'm going to go out and do my job and make sure a guy is not going to catch a lot of balls. I take pride any time I'm going against one of the top five receivers in the game – and Randy Moss is one of the greatest receivers to ever play – (and) if I get a chance like that, I'm going to take advantage of the opportunity.”
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Mamba · Oct 16, 2008

I love Jammer. He's been going unnoticed in the league because he doesn't pick a lot of passes off, but he is a great CB who isn't afraid to lay down a big hit. He's been a great mentor for Cromartie and I hope Cason can learn from him, too.

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Quietly, Consistently, Jammer Silencing Opponents

Mamba The King is Back Staff Member Global Moderator

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Quietly, Consistently, Jammer Silencing Opponents

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