Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
The Houston Texans finally saw the player they envisioned when they drafted Kareem Jackson out of the University of Alabama in 2010. Jackson lived up to the hype of being a first round draft pick and he led the Texans with four interceptions, returning one for a touchdown.
The four picks were a career high for Jackson, as were the 16 passes defensed, which also tied for the team lead, so it’s fair to say that Jackson broke out last season for the Texans. With the way Jackson improved and with the solid play of veteran cornerback Jonathan Joseph opposite of Jackson, the Texans secondary is in good hands moving forward. Jackson’s elevated play was a big reason the Texans defense finished seventh in the NFL in total defense this year and he’s only getting better.
Jackson has also turned out to be a very durable player, playing in all but one game in his first three years in the league so the Texans know they can count on Jackson. There are always lofty goals for first round draft picks and this was the year that Jackson finally put the pieces together and had a solid season. His statistics don’t tell the whole story either since Joseph is not tested that often, it means Jackson has more passes thrown his way so he handled the pressure well in 2012.
The exciting part is that is as good as Jackson was, he’s only going to get better and the Houston Texans defense is lucky to have a good young corner who is finally living up to the expectations. If last season was any indication, the sky is the limit for Kareem Jackson.
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