San Diego Chargers Draft Successes - #8 Vincent Jackson

Welcome to a retrospective of Vincent Jackson's time with the San Diego Chargers. Just like VJax's career, this will probably turn out to be both terribly frustrating and awesomely entertaining.

One of the most amazing things about Jackson, that I feel i should touch on now before I forget, is how he landed at the University of Northern Colorado. Jackson was from Colorado, but apparently barely recruited out of high school. How is that possible? Did they not realize he's 6'5"? Did they miss the blazing speed, toughness and sticky hands? I'm baffled by this and wish I knew more. Maybe one day he'll grant BFTB an interview and we'll get to the bottom of it.

Anyway, let's explore Jackson the way he should be explored.....with a Pros/Cons list. After the jump.

Pros

• For a late 2nd round pick (61st overall) to turn into a top 5 WR in the league is excellent value.
• An absolutely absurd 17.2 yards per catch for his career. He's always been a big-play threat.
• 3,500+ receiving yards and 28 TDs in about 4 seasons worth of games.
• A perfect combination with Philip Rivers, both on game days and with his work ethic during the week.

Cons

• In 2006, and just after becoming a starter, Jackson caught a pass and spun the ball on the ground after getting up.....even though he was never touched. Luckily for him, it was ruled an illegal forward pass after the officials looked at the replay. If you're gonna rip Richard Goodman for it, you can't cut VJax slack.
• He was been arrested for Driving Under the Influence of alcohol twice in a span of two seasons. The second time during a Chargers playoff run. He was then cited while driving to a playoff game the following season with his music too loud and without a valid driver's license. These actions earned him a 3 game suspension.
• During the same playoff game that he was driving to when he was pulled over (and his QB had to come give him a ride), Jackson was called for a 15 yard Unsportsmanlike Conduct penalty in a crucial part of the game for kicking the challenge flag thrown by New York Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan.
• In 2011, Vincent Jackson held out as long as he possibly could before signing the one-year tender the Chargers had offered him. This was done because Jackson believed, despite all of his off-the-field issues, that he should be given a long-term contract and paid as the best WR in the NFL. He ended up playing in parts of just 5 games, and could be looked at as one reason the Chargers had such a disappointing season.

See that? Good value, but frustrating as heck. This year Jackson remains with the Chargers, as long as a new NFL CBA includes continued usage of the Franchise Tag. That's what San Diego offered, and Jackson has said that he has no problem playing on a one-year contract. Who knows where this strange journey goes from here though.

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