Jeff Okudah called him a bull. Dan Campbell calls him a pit bull. And really, what's the difference? Jerry Jacobs is making himself felt in the Lions' secondary, one snarling play at a time.
"He’s grown about as much as anybody has from the time that he walked in the door," Campbell said Friday. "He was light-years away, light-years. To see where he’s at now and how he just improves every week is pretty impressive. He’s got some talent, but there’s also a demeanor about him. He’s not putting up with anything. He’s pretty tough, not afraid to tackle. He can run. He can hit. He’s a good communicator."
When he walked in the door this summer, Jacobs was a nobody. An undrafted free agent who launched his career at a community college after dropping out of high school and nearly ended it by opting out in the middle of last season at Arkansas after he lost his job as a starter -- a decision Jacobs would almost immediately regret. He was a longshot to the make the Lions roster, until he was a lock. He was a shadow in Detroit's secondary, until he was shadowing Adam Thielen and Ja'Marr Chase across the field.
"It's not like Jerry lacked talent," Campbell said. "Jerry had some ability. Now, there were other reasons maybe why he wasn’t drafted, but he had some ability. But to his credit, he put in the work. He’s got the right temperament about him, the right attitude, and he works at it. He knows his own deficiencies, if you will. By him knowing that and understanding who he is, it just makes him better."
It was in training camp that Okudah called Jacobs "my young bull" -- even though Jacobs, 24, is two years older. It was Okudah's season-ending injury in Week 1, followed by an injury to fellow rookie corner Ifeatu Melifonwu in Week 2, that gave Jacobs a shot. It was his own performance in limited action against the Bears that thrust him into the spotlight against the Vikings. Jacobs held Thielen without a catch until the final drive of the game when the two-time Pro Bowler shook free for two big gains that set up another heart-breaking loss for the Lions.
At practice on Thursday, Campbell said the Lions "recreated" the end-of-game scenario in Minnesota. And this time, for what it's worth, Jacobs was all over it.
"He was like a pit bull," Campbell said. "It was tight coverage. To watch him out there competing, play tight and defend – I’m trying to (call) daggers and he’s sticky. It was good. It was impressive.”
So was last Sunday. The Lions stuck Jacobs on Chase, the fifth overall pick who came into the game leading the NFL in touchdown receptions, and Jacobs hung tough despite a couple plays where he got beat over the top. He wound up earning the fourth highest coverage grade among NFL corners in Week 6, according to Pro Football Focus. Six weeks into the season, he has the second best coverage grade in Detroit's secondary after safety Tracy Walker.
"Blessed!!!" Jacobs said via Twitter. "But it don't stop here!!!"
This week might bring Jacobs' biggest test yet. With the Rams on deck, he might draw the NFL's second leading receiver in Cooper Kupp, who's on pace to catch more passes and more touchdowns from Matthew Stafford this season than Stafford ever threw to a guy known as Megatron. And if not Kupp, then two-time 1,000-yard receiver Robert Woods who's on pace to make it three. Either way, another major challenge.
And another chance for the Lions to evaluate Jacobs "against really, really good talent under, hopefully, a stressful situation where you're fighting for a win," said Campbell.
"I want to see if Jerry is out there battling," he said. "I don’t care if you are a rookie. I want to see him battling. Like, he’s had a hell of a week of practice. He’s been competitive. That’s what you want. You want to know you’re in the fight and that it’s not too big for these guys. They’re not scared."
Who knows how many players on this defense are pieces of Detroit's future. Probably not many. But a few are beginning to emerge, and Jacobs might be one of them. He was a nobody who's becoming a somebody, a wild boar at Arkansas who continues to snarl in Detroit.
"I think there may be something there," Campbell said. "That’s what we’re hoping. He just keeps competing and he’ll only get better.”