When asked about Lamar Jackson’s difficulties in the postseason, John Harbaugh concentrates on the “big picture.”
Next week, the tension that hangs over the Ravens’ future will become very clear. Quarterback Lamar Jackson is anticipated to get his second NFL Most Valuable Player award on Thursday at Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas. Super Bowl LVIII will begin three nights later at Allegiant Stadium, which is close by. The NFL’s finest club for the majority of this season, the Ravens, won’t be participating.
Maybe that’s simply the way things are in the AFC, where quarterback Patrick Mahomes of the Chiefs continues to be the biggest star in the NFL. Perhaps, even more painfully, some outstanding performers are simply unprepared for the spotlight. Four Super Bowl appearances in the previous five seasons have marked Kansas City’s run of postseason supremacy. It began in 2019 with a great Ravens team losing in the divisional round, and it continued on Sunday with another great Ravens team losing in the AFC championship game.
Jackson appears to be more and more of a victim of his regular-season success with every postseason defeat. He set a single-season record for the most rushing yards by a quarterback and led the NFL in passing touchdowns four years ago en route to winning unanimous MVP awards. However, despite having won 12 straight games, the Ravens fell short in their playoff opening at M&T Bank Stadium, falling to the Tennessee Titans 28–12. Jackson had one touchdown and three turnovers. The Chiefs, who were ranked second, went on to win the NFL championship for the first time in fifty years.
On Sunday, Jackson stood on the cusp of his first Super Bowl trip, backed by a better defense, stronger weapons and a more empowering play-caller than h he’d ever had. Again, the Ravens fell short. Jackson had two turnovers and one touchdown in a 17-10 loss to Kansas City.
