Lamar Jackson was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the final pick of the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft and a lot has changed with the team since that day. The MVP favorite reflected on how many of his original teammates have moved on in the span of six seasons, making him realize just how quickly his NFL career is going by.
"I remember coming into the building with all of those guys. Now, it's just like me, Gus [Edwards] and Mark [Andrews]. We had so many guys. It was incredible, man. They're all around the league right now and we're not in the same locker room anymore. It's crazy," Jackson said, via The Athletic.
The nostalgia helped make it clear to No. 8 that he does not have an eternity to win a Super Bowl. Jackson is 27, which is not old, but in the football world he is certainly not the youngest QB.
"It made me sit back and realize, 'Damn, I'm getting older. I've got to get a championship now.' That's one of the reasons I'm stressing that I need to win it. I'm not getting any younger. It's best to win it now," Jackson said.
This season, the Ravens seem to have their best chance to win it all. The team is strong in all three phases of the game and Jackson is playing at a top level. The quarterback career highs in passing yards with 3,678, completion percentage at 67.2 and yards per attempt at 8.0, as well as 29 touchdowns and just seven interceptions.
His 2023 regular season performance is likely going to earn him his second NFL MVP award and he was just named first-team All Pro and was selected to his third Pro Bowl, but Jackson is after something much bigger.
Jackson's teammates have noticed the urgency in their quarterback as he has that extra pressure to win now.
"His eyes are on that prize. His approach, if anything, he looks even more focused and locked in than ever. He's the leader, the heart and soul of this team," wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. said.
The weakness throughout his career has been winning playoff games and will be a story he needs to rewrite if he is to get to Las Vegas to play in Super Bowl LVII. He is 1-3 in postseason games with seven turnovers in those four matchups.
Last season the Ravens did not make it past the wild-card round, losing 24-17 to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Baltimore earned the No. 1 seed in the AFC this year, so they got the bonus of having a bye in the wild-card round. This weekend Jackson looks to win his second ever playoff game when the Ravens host the No. 4 Houston Texans, who stomped on the Cleveland Browns, defeating them 45-14 to advance.
