Why Ravens’ Lamar Jackson has a grudge on his shoulder following MVP season

Lamar Jackson, the Baltimore Ravens quarterback, was named a two-time regular season Most Valuable Player in February, but he said on Wednesday that he’s still recovering from the team’s 17-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game.

 

“I believe that just motivated us throughout the whole offseason,” Jackson said of the defeat to the eventual Super Bowl champs, according to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. “People are still talking about it, and so are we as players. It left a terrible taste in our lips simply being so near. We worked so hard to get there, yet we didn’t do what we wanted or realise our dreams. “We have a little chip on our shoulder.”

 

 

Baltimore entered last season’s playoffs as the NFL’s best overall team before the club held serve at home with an impressive 34-10 win over the Houston Texans in the divisional round.

However, questions remain regarding Jackson’s ability to guide the Ravens to where they want to go considering he now holds a 2-4 career playoff record.

Jackson had never played in a conference title contest before the Ravens fell to the Chiefs at Baltimore’s M&T Bank Stadium on Jan. 28.

“I believe it hurts more losing before the Super Bowl than actually being a part of it, because we worked so hard for 17 weeks, plus the little playoff games, and we get to a game away and lose,” Jackson added during his comments. “We didn’t really put any points on the board, and we were just scoring 30 points against crazy teams — great defenses. Don’t get me wrong, that’s a great defense as well, but we had played the top-ranked defenses. We just have to finish.”

 

As of Thursday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Ravens ranked second among the betting favourites for Super Bowl LIX, with +475 odds. To assist Baltimore achieve that goal, Jackson slimmed down to what Zrebiec described the quarterback’s lowest recorded weight in a career that started in the spring of 2018. “I can be more agile, be able to move more,” Jackson remarked regarding losing weight, according to Michael Baca of the league’s website. “I feel great right now.” This winter, he hopes to be better than ever in the games that count the most.