QB Greyson Lambert Solidifies Georgia's Status as a Playoff Contender

Georgia entered Saturday night's contest with South Carolina with the No. 7 ranking.

Based on rank alone, that might have been enough to assume that the Bulldogs were already playoff contenders.

They weren't, due in large part to a lackluster passing game under graduate transfer Greyson Lambert that looked about as dangerous as a pillow fight against Louisiana-Monroe and Vanderbilt. Lambert struggled to stretch the field over those first two games, and he didn't complete a pass until the second half last week against the Commodores.

John Bazemore/Associated Press

That changed in their 52-20 win over the Gamecocks between the hedges.

Lambert completed 24 of his 25 passes for 330 yards, three touchdowns and no picks on the night, played with composure and completed several deep passes, including a 25-yarder to Malcolm Mitchell and a 20-yarder to tight end Jay Rome. 

At one point, he completed 20 straight passes to end the game—a school record previously held by former quarterback and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo (19). As Jason Butt of the Macon Telegraph noted on Twitter, Lambert had a record-setting night.

"Can you believe that guy had an incompletion? What's wrong with him?," head coach Mark Richt joked according to quotes emailed by Georgia. "It was one of those days where you just leave him alone. We had a plan again to get Brice (Ramsey) in the game, but after three series, we said, 'Let's just keep playing.' We were good offensively and Lambert was just so hot."

Lambert's performance signified the final piece of Georgia's offensive puzzle sliding into place.

Head coach Mark Richt and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer already knew that running back Nick Chubb was a bona fide stud. He had a typical performance against the Gamecocks with 159 yards and two touchdowns—his 11th straight game over the century mark on the ground.

They didn't know if they had the threat of a downfield passing attack.

Now they do.

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Is Lambert suddenly going to sling it all over the yard, put up video game numbers on the stat sheet and compete for the Heisman Trophy? 

Of course not.

Chubb is the Heisman contender in the "Classic City." 

But Lambert is what makes Georgia a true playoff contender rather than a paper tiger.

A team can't be one-dimensional by necessity and expect to consistently perform at the elite level required to make a spot in the four-team College Football Playoff. Good teams can stop Chubb, or at least slow him enough to force the quarterback to win a game rather than manage it.

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Lambert showed he can do that early against the Gamecocks, and he let Chubb and Co. close the door late in the blowout between the hedges.

Instead of simply taking care of a lesser opponent—like Georgia did last week in their 31-14 win over Vanderbilt—it beat the brakes off of a lesser opponent. 

This is what Georgia football needs to be. 

Instead of "Nick Chubb left" and "Nick Chubb right," it's a similar recipe with a dash of downfield danger mixed in.

Lambert proved Saturday that he's the guy to provide that extra seasoning.

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Statistics are courtesy of CFBStats.com.

Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report, as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on SiriusXM 83. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.