Lamar Jackson is on his way to his third NFL MVP award since he was the last of five quarterbacks drafted in the 2019 NFL draft. Josh Allen might have something to say about that, but Jackson’s career season as he navigated a murderer’s row of AFC squads resulted in more NFL records.
Lamar Jackson Voted First-Team NFL All-Pro By Associated Press
If the 2024 AP NFL All-Pro voting is the first hurdle toward an MVP award, then Jackson will take it home again. The All-Pro teams were announced on Friday, with Jackson, Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley and Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson leading the first team. Allen made the second team.
Jackson, who led the NFL in both yards per pass and yards per run, also took the game to new heights as he became the first player to throw for 4,000 yards and rush for 800 or more yards in a single season, while breaking Michael Vick’s long-standing NFL career rushing record for quarterbacks.
Ovie Mughelli and Brian Finneran chopped it up in The Shadow League’s “Locker Room” pocast concerning Lamar’s current standing among the all-time greats.
The Shadow League “Locker Room” Host Questions Lamar Jackson’s Elite Status
“As a former Baltimore Raven, I feel like Lamar has got to win a Super Bowl for people to take him seriously,” said Mughelli. “For all the awards he’s gotten. The MVPs. People know that he’s got generational talent, but if he doesn’t win a Super Bowl is Lamar Jackson going to be put up there as one of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL?”
Finneran started with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1999, which was Andy Reid’s rookie season as a head coach and the beginning of the Donovan McNabb era. The lanky 6-foot-5 receiver spent 11 quality years with the Falcons, battling injuries and adversity.
“So did you win the Super Bowl when you played football?” Finneran asked Mughelli, an NFL veteran of almost a decade as a fullback.
“I didn’t,” the 2010 Pro Bowl fullback replied. “I played for 10 years, went to the playoffs five times and never even won a playoff game.”
Finneran notes how he also went to the playoffs several times, including an NFC Championship game and lost some tough, close games and experienced crucial penalties that led to losses.
“It’s such a team sport and everybody has to do everything right,” Finneran said. “The slightest mistake can kill you.”
Former Atlanta Falcons WR Brian Finneran Doesn’t Judge Hall of Famers Based On Rings: Lamar Jackson Still All-Time Great
Finneran doesn’t believe in superheroes. He says Lamar Jackson needs everything to break right to win. If he doesn’t win one and he becomes the Dan Marino of his era, it won’t erase all of his glorious individual and team accomplishments and leadership.
“It’s the hardest thing to do, to not only get there then win the whole thing,” said Finneran, who played in the 2004 NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles. “I have a tough time putting Hall of Fame status on people only because they get to the Super Bowl and win it. Lamar Jackon is special whether he gets to the Super Bowl or not, but he does have to win some playoff games.
Lamar Jackson Has Losing Playoff Record: Zay Flowers Injured
Despite all of the accolades, his legacy is considered incomplete because he has a 2-4 record in the postseason, including a loss to the Titans in the 2019 divisional round. He was favored going into the AFC Championship Game last season against Patrick Mahomes and fell short. Regardless of his accolades, he will be heavily judged on this playoff run.
Defeating a Steelers team that hasn’t won in four games won’t be an easy task, particularly now that Jackson’s No. 1 target Zay Flowers is out with a knee injury. The dynamic, speedy wideout became the first Baltimore Ravens wide receiver to make a Pro Bowl, accounting for 74 receptions for 1,059 yards and four touchdowns. Flowers’ elevation and the addition of Derrick Henry coincides with Jackson’s improved passing efficiency.
The road to a championship begins Saturday at 8 p.m. at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
