Berlin Thunder quarterback Jakeb Sullivan: „Of course there was frustration!“
The Berlin Thunder may have left Duisburg with a defeat, but the team gave fans plenty of reasons to stay optimistic. A new team, a tough start and a quarterback who knows what it takes – Jakeb Sullivan talks about a season that is only just beginning and what lies ahead for the Thunder.
A Team Still Finding Itself and a Quarterback Who Believes it Will
That Jakeb Sullivan is a one of the most-experienced European quarterbacks, is no question. Being on four different teams since 2019, his Europe stop clearly isn’t a a stop on the way to somewhere else anymore, but the destination.
Asked when it became clear to him that Europe was more than just a stop along the way, the signal caller from South Dakota himself said: „I think it became pretty apparent to me after winning the championship in 2021. It wasn’t just the win itself. It was the feeling of American football in Europe. The fans, the supporters, and everyone surrounding the game make it incredibly special to me.“
That he has truly made Europe his home is reflected not only in his loyalty to the game, but in the role he has grown into off the field as well. Sullivan is not just a player, he is also working as a quarterbacks coach teaching the youth. Asked how he separates the two roles, and whether coaching changes the way he sees his own game, his answer reveals a lot about the man behind the helmet: „I try not to separate the two roles too much because, as a coach, you can only coach from experience and from what you’ve learned along the way. Learning from my past successes and failures, as well as from every coach I work with, gives me another nugget of information that I can apply to my own game. I love being able to help shape the future of the game and pass along my experiences in the hope that they help develop not only good quarterbacks, but good human beings as well,“ Sullivan said.
In 2026, learning from past successes and failures is more than just a coaching philosophy for the signal caller. It is the lens through which he reads this entire season, because he has been wearing a Berlin Thunder jersey since 2024, but this season feels different. After the loss against the Wroclaw Panthers, Sullivan summed up the situation plainly: „This is a brand new team, there are only a few guys coming back from last year, brand new coaching staff, brand new everything. We’re still coming together.“
That this process is moving forward became clear in the toughest road game of the season so far. Against Rhein Fire, one of the league’s top contenders, Berlin Thunder put up an impressive performance. 303 passing yards, 161 on the ground, and still, it wasn’t enough. Sullivan himself put it this way: „I have never heard of a professional football team starting a season with five consecutive away games, and we just finished playing in one of the toughest places to play in Europe against one of the best teams in Europe. We competed with them for all four quarters. Overall, I’m extremely proud of my guys.“
What ultimately made the difference came down to two critical drives in the third quarter. Asked what exactly went wrong at the end, he answered: „We simply weren’t able to sustain our first two drives in the second half. When you play a team like that, every possession is important. Scoring is obviously the priority, but field position is another critical piece, and on both drives we gave them great field position while failing to put any points on the board.“
The mood in the locker room afterwards? Hard to put into words, as Sullivan himself admits, but far from hopeless: „Every single person in that locker room wanted that win, so of course there was frustration. But we also had to remind ourselves that we just went through five straight away games. This bye week is deserved, and it is needed.“
„We Need to Build Off the Balanced Attack“
Next up is the first home game of the season, and it comes with a score to settle. In the season opener against the Vienna Vikings, Berlin Thunder were thoroughly outplayed: only 44 rushing yards, six quarterback sacks, 13 penalties for 118 yards, and a final score of 49-7 that left little room for interpretation. For Sullivan, who was on the field that day, that number has not been forgotten.
In Duisburg, something finally seemed to click for Berlin Thunder. The combination of running game and passing game, less penalties, the composure, the fight. It was all there. But one question hangs over the team like a sword of Damocles: Can they bring that same game to home turf, and pull off the upset against Vienna?
Sullivan has a clear answer: „We absolutely need to build off the balanced attack everyone saw against Rhein Fire. Having the ability to hand the ball off and consistently move the chains makes our passing game that much more efficient and dangerous. We showed flashes in the run game against Wroclaw, as well as resilience. Against Rhein Fire, we carried over more consistency in the run game and fought until the final second ticked off the clock. As a quarterback, the resiliency factor is something I respect a lot about this team.“
When it comes to Vienna, he knows exactly what the game needs to be like.
„Vienna is a complete football team. We need to play mistake-free football and give ourselves a chance to compete. Essentially, we need to make the simple plays simple, avoid beating ourselves, and be effective in all three phases of the game. (…) The fact that we still have a lot of room for growth is a positive. I’m surrounded by a group of explosive, high-level skill players, an offensive line that has improved every game, and an OC in Coach Shannon who continues to put us in positions to succeed.“ He added, „Our game plan each week is straightforward and simple: protect the football and get our playmakers the football. It’s a luxury to share the field with these guys, and every time they touch the ball, big plays can happen.“
Berlin’s 2-3 record tells the story of a young team still finding its footing. But if the performance in Duisburg is any indication, the pieces are beginning to fall into place. Sullivan has seen this before. The grind, the growing pains, the moment a team finally clicks. He has won a championship on this continent. He knows what it takes. And if there is one thing this season has made clear, it is that Jakeb Sullivan is not here to pass through. He is here to build something.
