Are We Allowed To Acknowledge Lamar Jackson Is Running Out Of Excuses?

Are we allowed to acknowledge that Lamar Jackson is running out of excuses?

The Ravens just traded for Maxx Crosby, one of the best pass rushers in football. Combined with Kyle Hamilton and Roquan Smith, Baltimore should have one of the top defenses in the league.

On offense, Zay Flowers finished seventh in receiving yards last season. Derrick Henry was second in rushing. This is not a situation where Lamar Jackson has to carry a weak roster. On paper, this is one of the most complete teams in the NFL.

The sports books agree. As of early March, the Ravens are the favorites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.

Admittedly, our opening question is meant to be facetious. Jackson doesn't have to win a Super Bowl this season or else. Football does not work like that. Injuries happen. Calls go the wrong way. One bad bounce can end a season. A quarterback can play well and still lose in January.

But it is fair to notice how often Jackson gets the benefit of the doubt compared to other star quarterbacks.

When the Ravens fell short last season, the usual suspects rushed to defend him. Ryan Clark and Cam Newton said it was not Jackson's fault because football is a team sport.

That is true. It is. The problem is that the same grace does not always apply to, say, Josh Allen. Here is how Clark and Ryan covered Allen just a week later:

Got that? 

According to Clark and Newton, Josh Allen is out of excuses because he is the quarterback. Meanwhile, Jackson deserves a pass because football is a team sport.

The disparate treatment of Allen and Jackson is nothing new. Our personal favorite was in 2023, when the Chiefs beat the Bills and Ravens in back-to-back road games in the playoffs. Allen outplayed Jackson against the same Kansas City defense. Yet the likes of Clark, Bomani Jones, Stephen A. Smith, and others defended Jackson while shaming Allen.

Ahead of the Super Bowl, Cam Jordan argued that Jackson is more trustworthy in big games, despite Allen having a far better resume in big games.

Playoff records:

Josh Allen: 8-6, 4,682 total yards, 36 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a 101.4 passer rating.

Lamar Jackson: 3-5, 2,394 total yards, 13 touchdowns, seven interceptions, and an 84.6 passer rating.

Allen is also 2-0 against Jackson head-to-head in the playoffs.

BALTIMORE- Maxx Crosby #98 of the Las Vegas Raiders sacks Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens during the fourth quarter at M&T Bank Stadium on September 15, 2024. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Now flip the current situation. If Buffalo had just added a player like Crosby, every debate show would lead with how much pressure that puts on Allen. Yet when Baltimore does it, the conversation about pressure on Jackson is much quieter. Dan Orlovsky is one of the few analysts who has openly said the move raises expectations for Jackson. Orlovsky is also one of the few analysts who isn't interested in scoring points in the culture war.

Context also matters. Jackson routinely finds himself in more ideal situations in Baltimore than Allen does in Buffalo. The Ravens are one of the best-run organizations in the league. They were before Jackson arrived. They add new, established All-Pros to their roster every few seasons, trading for linebacker Roquan Smith in 2022, signing Derrick Henry in 2024, and trading for Crosby last week. Meanwhile, the Bills just traded a second-round pick for DJ Moore, who is probably worth about a fifth-rounder.

Both teams fired their head coaches this year. The Ravens signed hotshot Jesse Minter. The Bills promoted Joe Brady in-house, keeping its questionable front office intact.

Put simply, Jackson has not maximized the situation around him like Allen has. Yet the talking heads continue to defend Jackson in ways they never would his peers.

Why is that?

Of course, we ask that rhetorically. We have explained the reasons for the soft coverage before. Jackson was cast in the race wars ahead of the 2018 draft when Bill Polian suggested he play wide receiver. Ever since, the media has depicted Jackson as the Face of the Black Quarterback, forced to overcome racist owners and media narratives. 

Subsequently, the same race idolatrous commentators cast Josh Allen as the Great White Villain because he used a racial slur as a teen and often competes with Jackson as the second-best quarterback of this era after Patrick Mahomes.

Those roles are so entrenched that even Lamar Jackson now seems to believe he is a victim of the media. "Dan there has never been excuses for Lamar though," he responded to Orlovsky’s post on Monday.

Again, Jackson has proven he is a great quarterback, and there is very little he can do this upcoming season to change that. Jalen Hurts and Sam Darnold are the last two Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks, proving success is hardly all about the quarterback.

That said, if we are going to do the whole "excuses vs. no excuses" conversation again this season, it should be aimed at Lamar Jackson. The Ravens have, again, given him the roster to compete.