Lights, camera, Jackson.
Playoff advancement has not been in the cards since the Baltimore Ravens drafted Lamar Jackson with the 32nd pick in the first round out of Louisville in 2018. Coming into this season, the team was 1-4, including 1-3 with Jackson in playoff games since he came on the scene. Understandably, the critics and fans alike were starting to question Jackson’s leadership and playoff ability.
However, during Saturday’s 34-10 AFC Divisional Round win against the upstart Houston Texans, he put questions about both to rest for at least one more week.
The first half left a lot to be desired for the Ravens, especially since the starters had not taken the field in 20 day. While their vaunted defense held the Texans to just a field goal, which could have been six if place kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn had not missed a 47-yard field goal attempt before the break, and the special teams allowed a 67-yard punt return touchdown by Steven Sims.
After scoring on two of its first three drives, the Ravens finished the half with a trio of three-and-outs. When the Ravens got to the locker room, the normally stoic, conservative and spiritual Jackson let out a profanity-laced speech.
“It would be inappropriate if I said it right here,” Jackson said of his speech in the postgame press conference. “It would. We wasn’t really doing anything to that defense. They was playing great — that offense was playing great, as well. But we wasn’t doing our job with our unit. And, second half, we wanted to put points on the board, start moving the ball, moving the chains and start looking like ourselves.”
Jackson showed off his leadership skills on the gridiron for the entire sixty minutes. He was spotted yelling at All-Pro left tackle Ronnie Stanley for missing a crucial blocking assignment on a run to the left side of the field. Later in the contest on a got to have it 3rd-and-1, the Ravens went back to the well with a designed run for Jackson behind Stanley. This time around, Stanley got up the field for his blocks and Jackson scored one of his two rushing touchdowns.
After a costly dropped interception by Texans safety Jalen Pitre while Jackson attempted to squeeze a pass into the end zone to tight end Isaiah Likely instead of taking what the defense gave him, a simple check down, that would have resulted in at least a seven yard gain to fullback Patrick Ricard, Likely was seen telling Jackson to throw the ball higher. In the fourth quarter, Jackson listened to his teammate and did just that, and Likely ended up with a 15-yard touchdown by using his height advantage and leaping ability over a smaller defender.
“We know what we’re capable of, and we wasn’t putting that out on the field,” linebacker Patrick Queen said of Baltimore’s first half. “So when you got guys like Lamar, who’s upset about that kind of stuff, who usually don’t tend to talk that much — but when he does, it’s very vocal — you just gotta sit up and listen. The guy got something good to say, and rightfully so. [He was] in the right place to say what he said, so that’s when it’s our job to keep giving them the ball back and let them do what they do.”
Jackson’s messages resonated with his guys. Following a first half that was knotted at 10, the Ravens put a strangle hold on the game, scoring 24 unanswered points in the second half.
The Ravens punter had the rest of the day off and the team had no turnovers in the second half, whereas the Texans could not get in position to even attempt a field goal.
Embed from Getty ImagesJackson became the second quarterback in the Super Bowl era to throw for at least 150 yards, use his legs for an additional 100 yards and score two touchdowns each through the air and ground in a single playoff game. The only other player to do so was former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in 2013.
“We are as he goes,” said wide receiver Nelson Agholor, who scored the Ravens only first-half touchdown and his first playoff touchdown of his career. “His personality, he is the Baltimore Ravens. He leads the right way: by example. But also when it’s time to talk, it’s said, and then he executes. He does. He doesn’t just talk, talk, talk and then go out there and not do nothing. He says what needs to be said and then goes out there and executes.”
Jackson is now 2-3 in the playoffs, earning the first home playoff win of his career on Saturday. The Ravens will now host the first AFC Championship in the franchise’s history next Sunday when they face the winner of Sunday’s game between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs.
When the Ravens went to Orchid Park to face off against the Buffalo Bills in the 2020 Divisional Round, a pressure from Jerry Hughes caused Jackson to miss Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown for a game-tying touchdown in the third quarter. On the very next play, Taron Johnson caught a pick-six off Jackson, and the Bills went on to win the game before losing at Arrowhead Stadium the next week.
Jackson has yet to go mano y mano with Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the playoffs, but is 1-3 against him in the regular season.
The AFC Championship is set for a 3 p.m. ET kickoff next Sunday on CBS.
