A flag football quarterback shot to popularity after slicing up Tom Brady’s team at the recent star-studded Fanatics event. But a certain NFL veteran couldn’t care less about this star talent’s performance. As far as the senior is concerned, when the 2028 Olympics come around, there is only one man who should be headlining Team USA’s offense, and it’s not the guy who took down Brady’s team.

“Darrell Doucette, I don’t care about your track record in flag football when it comes to the 2028 Olympics, hand Lamar Jackson a water,” former Steelers nose tackle Breiden Fehoko posted on X.

Team USA dominated two squads filled with NFL players to win the first Flag Football Classic on Saturday in Los Angeles. Quarterback Darrell Doucette and his team bullied Brady’s Founders FFC to a 16-43 defeat, after quieting the Joe Burrow-led Wildcats 34-19 right before. It was a Doucette show through and through, who outperformed the greatest in the NFL twice.

He was named MVP of the Flag Football Classic, having scored six total touchdowns. He said recently that he was better than Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, and put his words to the test successfully against the Founders and the Wildcats. In the championship game with the Wildcats, Doucette and Co. pulled away with a 24-14 win. Amid NFL players pushing for a spot in the Olympic team, this was Doucette’s way of saying that he isn’t going anywhere from the national team.

Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts are the key figures in the NFL’s push for Olympic flag football. Hurts was also involved in the promotional efforts to bring the sport into the Olympics, and both players are currently the sport’s ambassadors worldwide. Although the question of which quarterback will be the starter for Team USA is still unclear, either player can represent the country at the Olympics and then return to their NFL teams with the new eight-day schedule. In a poll of NFL players conducted by The Athletic, Jackson received the most votes (12) when players were asked who should represent Team USA at quarterback.

“Lamar Jackson, no doubt,” one NFC defensive player said. “Especially in flag football, you have to go with a dual-threat.”

Another NFC special teamer added, “A mobile quarterback in flag football is so important.”

So, it’s understandable why many see Lamar Jackson as the likely starter for the Olympics. However, is the Ravens QB up for the challenge himself?

Lamar Jackson ‘doubts’ playing in the Olympics

Lamar Jackson has everything fans want in the quarterback of Team USA. He has an elite arm and is a huge threat when he runs. However, despite being one of the most popular names in the league, Jackson isn’t too keen on competing as part of the national team. He wants Doucette and Co. to keep going as they have all these years.

“I doubt it. I’m a professional NFL player. So I’m just going to stay over here and let those guys have fun,” he said on The Lounge podcast last year. He is confident that there’s gold on the way if he joins Team USA, but he still lauded the efforts of the current players on the team, because “they’re performing for our country at the end of the day.”

Jackson has multiple Pro Bowl honors to his name and is a two-time NFL MVP. He should be the man up for the job, as everyone thinks. But he’s also got the league to worry about, his primary job at the moment. Jackson is yet to win the Super Bowl for the Baltimore Ravens, and Feheko even said in 2024 that it’s something he’ll never be able to achieve. Right now, Lamar Jackson would simply be taking a lot on his plate if he signs up for Team USA. Especially when there’s already a Darrell Doucette who is more than qualified for the job.

Though Jackson made those comments a year ago, he had already given fans an idea about where his priorities lay at that time. By stepping away, he might be giving a green light for Darrell Doucette to be the man in charge.