Lamar Jackson wins NFL playoff game for first time as Baltimore Raven
After two years of disappointments and one other season’s value of reminders of what he supposedly couldn’t do, Lamar Jackson vanquished the ghosts of postseasons previous.
Delivering an authoritative efficiency, the reigning NFL MVP led his Baltimore Ravens to a 20-13 upset of the Tennessee Titans within the AFC wild-card spherical of the playoffs Sunday at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.
Jackson handed for 179 yards and rushed for a game-high 136, together with a 48-yard landing.
In the method, he laid to relaxation all the knocks leveled in opposition to him since he made his playoff debut as a rookie in 2018.
He can’t play from behind, they stated, citing the truth that since he turned a starter, Jackson and the Ravens are the one NFL workforce to by no means win a game when trailing by 10 factors or extra.
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Well, on Sunday, Jackson shook off an early interception and dug them out of a 10-0 gap. The Ravens scored 17 unanswered factors within the second and third quarters to take a lead they by no means relinquished.
He can’t win within the playoffs, they stated due to his 0-2 put up season document, together with final season’s 28-12 loss to Tennessee the place he turned the ball over thrice and bought sacked 4 instances whereas posting an unpleasant 63.2 passer ranking.
But in his third profession playoff game, Jackson displayed higher maturity and dedication, offering clutch performs whereas holding the Titans off steadiness and provoking his teammates to show in a few of their finest performances.
Wide receiver Marquise Brown had 9 catches for 109 yards; working again Josh Dobbins had a dashing landing, and fellow again Gus Edwards had key late-game good points to assist put the competition out of attain. The protection, in the meantime, contained dashing champion Derrick Henry to simply 40 yards on 18 carries a yr after he gashed them for 195 yards on 30 rushes. And cornerback Marcus Peters had a game-sealing interception of Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill.
But in an indication of their appreciation of his management, the Ravens coaches and gamers gave Jackson the game ball in a short locker room celebration.
He had earned it by enduring two years of disappointments and all of the criticism, and by the way in which he returned from a November coronavirus-induced layoff to spark a six-game, playoff-berth-clinching win streak after which punctuated all of it with Sunday’s efficiency.
“It’s crazy because, I got my first playoff win, and I’m happy for myself,” cornerback Marlon Humphrey said, “but I’m almost more happy for Lamar. It sucks to be in his position at times because when you lose, it’s only his fault. It’s nobody else’s fault or the defense’s fault. So, it’s always Lamar’s fault, and when you win, it’s him as well. It’s great when it’s on the winning side. But it sucks because he can play his heart out, but if other guys fall short, and I know it’s a team game, but whenever it’s a loss, it’s always his fault.”
Indeed Jackson continuously has discovered himself on the middle of unjust criticism throughout his younger NFL profession. Much of it has to do with the truth that he doesn’t look or play like the standard NFL passer.
He’s a younger Black man, making his approach on the planet his approach. But which means, he’s considered with a extra vital eye, particularly when his approach doesn’t produce optimum outcomes or when issues don’t play out the way in which the critics imagine they need to.
But, it’s usually ignored that Jackson — the youngest participant to win the Heisman Trophy whereas in faculty and the youngest to win NFL MVP honors — simply turned 24 and solely is in his third season. Growth takes time.
Growth got here within the second half of the season and continued to present itself Sunday.
Around the halfway level of the season, the microscope educated ever so fiercely on Jackson as Baltimore misplaced 4 of 5 and three straight from Weeks 10 to 12. Jackson wasn’t as impactful together with his legs or arm. The offense did not scare opponents, and the protection struggled to compensate. At 6-5 getting into Week 13, Baltimore, which posted the very best document within the league final season, was in peril of lacking the playoffs. But Jackson returned from the Week 12 COVID-19 absence hellbent on saving his workforce’s season.
As a workforce, Baltimore’s coaches and gamers targeted on the mantra of “Finish,” and Jackson appeared to play with higher aggression and extra freedom.
“Just being locked in,” Jackson defined of his late-season mindset. “There were plenty of times in games where we had opponents beat, and our defense would stop opponents and get off the field and we weren’t responding. Our biggest thing after COVID was, ‘Finish.’ We do a great job of talking about it on the field, but we don’t finish, so the biggest thing was us taking advantage (and finishing). … We took our time, each and every play and focused on scoring points and finishing drives.”
Jackson and the Ravens definitely appeared to realize momentum as the game reached its late levels. The line started to steamroll the Titans’ defensive entrance, paving the way in which for time-consuming runs. The protection netted stops on key downs, and there was a glance of resignation on the elements of Tennessee’s gamers.
With 1:45 left, proper after the Peters choose, Jackson ripped off a 33-yard run to the Tennessee 29, then slid to keep away from going out of bounds. Three Edwards runs later, Jackson took a knee to expire the clock and jogged to the locker room, jubilant and relieved to have lastly proved he and his teammates might win within the postseason.
“It feels good,” Jackson stated. “I knew we had the capability of doing that, but there will always be naysayers no matter what, so we have to take it one game at a time. … I don’t really care what people say. I’m just happy we got the win and to move onto the next round.”
