5 big lessons we learned from the 2019 NFL season

Life is full of lessons. So, too, is each NFL season. These are the biggest lessons we learned from the 2019 campaign:

Big swings are worth the risk in the draft

Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, the NFL's two best quarterbacks this season, entered the professional ranks with plenty of red flags flying. Now, one flies a championship banner and the other probably isn't far behind.

After years of not-quite-good-enough playoff exits behind Alex Smith, the Chiefs made the bold decision not to replenish their roster around the veteran passer, as they opted to reboot the most important position on the field. It took two first-round picks and more to move up from the 27th overall selection to draft Mahomes at No. 10 in 2017, a risky investment considering scouting reports noted the need to coach out his scattershot mechanics and his penchant for attempting passes beyond his abilities.

However, it turns out there's actually very little beyond Mahomes' abilities, and that he needed a coaching staff that allows him the freedom to try crazy things - like no-look throws - far more than he needed to rebuild his atypical throwing mechanics.

Jackson wasn't even considered a quarterback prospect by some pundits, who questioned his passing acumen and durability, and he almost fell out of the first round in 2018. The Ravens would probably say they always saw greatness in Jackson, but that revisionist history omits the fact that they preferred to draft tight end Hayden Hurst at No. 25 and had to trade back into the first round for Jackson at No. 32. Deciding to put their chips on the table during that hour forever altered the course of the Ravens.

The Jackson selection did indeed carry significant risk, but also tantalizing upside if he hit. And he absolutely hit in 2019, as he not only shattered the long-standing quarterback rushing record, but he also led the NFL in passing touchdowns. Concerns about his arm talent were completely unfounded, and Jackson's so good at avoiding hits that it doesn't matter that he's often the skinniest player on the field.

Neither Mahomes nor Jackson was the first passer selected in their respective drafts, with teams preferring more conventional and "safer" passers like Mitchell Trubisky, Baker Mayfield, and Josh Rosen. But if the NFL dispersed all players via fantasy draft today, Mahomes and Jackson would be the first two picks.

Take big swings and you're liable to strike out sometimes. But you won't hit many home runs - at least not the 500-foot bombs that create legends - if you don't aim for the fences and cut it loose.

- David P. Woods

Head coaches don't need to fit an archetypeIcon Sportswire / Getty Images

NFL teams are obsessed with pinpointing what, exactly, makes a good head coach, yet so many can't find the answer. That's because the perfect answer doesn't exist.

Young, charismatic, offensive-minded coaches like Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay have been the apple of teams' eyes in recent years, and both reached a Super Bowl quickly, but old guards like Andy Reid and Bill Belichick have been equally successful thanks to their adaptability and natural leadership qualities.

Other veteran head coaches - like John Harbaugh, Mike Tomlin, and Pete Carroll - have thrived in a CEO type of role, delegating most of the tactical responsibilities to assistants while being the primary culture builders for their franchises.

Desperate teams often seek a quick fix to their problems and hire coaches who called the right play at the right time for a particular club. While great play-callers make for great coordinators, they're not automatically great head coaches: Freddie Kitchens flamed out after one year in Cleveland, Zac Taylor posted the worst record in football in his inaugural campaign with Cincinnati, and Matt Nagy was heavily criticized in Chicago a season after being named Coach of the Year.

Strong bench bosses come in all different shapes, sizes, and specialties. Future searches should be focused on finding qualified leaders, regardless of their background, specialty, profile, or style.

- Alex Chippin

QB competition is importantThearon W. Henderson / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The Tennessee Titans were treated to their deepest playoff run in 17 years - and not by former No. 2 overall pick Marcus Mariota. Nobody could have predicted that Ryan Tannehill would post the highest passer rating in the league in 2019, but the presence of a somewhat established veteran like him allowed the Titans to pull the plug on an ineffective Mariota without giving up on their season.

Clubs are typically hesitant to bring in legitimate competition for struggling, young quarterbacks for fear of damaging a prodigy's confidence or inciting a controversy. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears found themselves stuck with inadequate starters like Jameis Winston and Mitchell Trubisky due to a lack of viable options on the bench in 2019, and they endured disappointing campaigns as a result.

Good backups aren't easy to find, and no team wants to pay a premium for a player that may never play a meaningful snap. But it's always better to have a Plan B and not need it than to need a Plan B and not have it, even at the risk of hurting the incumbent's feelings.

- Chippin

Star players are gaining powerMichael Reaves / Getty Images Sport / Getty

For the entirety of its existence, the NFL has been structured in a way that allows teams to hold ultimate power over the players. Barring a new collective bargaining agreement involving fully guaranteed contracts or the elimination of the franchise tag, among other things, that will largely remain the case for years to come. Slowly but surely, though, we are beginning to see a change.

In what was perhaps the most dramatic shift since the introduction of free agency back in 1993, the past year saw a stunning amount of stars follow the lead of NBA players and take control of their futures.

Even with the odds stacked against them, either due to complex contract situations or a perceived lack of leverage, Jalen Ramsey, Antonio Brown, and Minkah Fitzpatrick were all successful in forcing trades. Ezekiel Elliott became the highest-paid running back in football after holding out for a contract extension with two years remaining on his rookie deal, which was both an unprecedented move and particularly noteworthy for a running back.

Le'Veon Bell probably deserves a lot of credit for leading the way on this front, as his willingness to sit out the entire 2018 campaign instead of playing on the franchise tag appears to have laid the groundwork for players to push back and get what they deserve.

Not every player has the leverage to orchestrate these kinds of moves - the spectacular failure of Melvin Gordon's holdout illustrates how high the bar still is for stars to get what they want. But it's certainly a start. And who knows? Maybe this taste of power, after so many years being denied anything of the sort, will give the players another chess piece as CBA negotiations ramp up.

- Dan Wilkins

The running game still mattersMediaNews Group/The Mercury News via Getty Images / MediaNews Group / Getty

The cool thing to think nowadays, as an increased focus on analytics has highlighted a discrepancy between efficiency numbers when passing and running, is that the ground game is essentially meaningless by comparison. Naturally, as more teams begin to enjoy success with pass-heavy offenses, you'll see some go so far as to declare that the running game is dead.

However, some of the NFL's best teams in 2019 are here to tell you otherwise. Airing it out is not the only way to win in this league, and as defenses evolve specifically to stop elite passing attacks, there's an element of zigging when the rest of the league zags that makes a dominant ground game all the more effective.

The 49ers got to the Super Bowl and came within minutes of their first title since 1994 on the back of a masterful zone running game and a stout defense. Tennessee's rushing attack was different, in that Derrick Henry's downhill running style punished opponents en route to a pair of playoff upsets, but in complementing a good defense, the overall theme is similar - neither contender was carried by its quarterback.

The Ravens had the benefit of the league's MVP under center, but the foundation of that offense was a ground attack that used Jackson's electric ability as a runner, along with the power running back tandem of Mark Ingram and Gus Edwards. The result was a new single-season record for rushing yards and the type of unstoppable running game that forced defenses to adjust and leave themselves more susceptible to big passing plays.

Yes, passing is the most dynamic way to move the ball and, thus, score points in today's game. If you can do so at the level of the Chiefs, you're in great shape. But how many teams can do that? There are still other ways to win, including the kind of run-heavy offense that many clubs, amid an ongoing passing revolution, just aren't equipped to stop.

- Wilkins

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