Jackson’s Hall of Fame-Level Play Bittersweet, For Now

Number eight is on fire.

Lamarvelous finished last night’s nail-biting victory against the Bengals by completing 25 of 33 passes for 290 yards, four touchdowns, and an eye-popping passer rating of 141.1.

Even with his past brilliance and two (well-deserved) MVPs, Lamar Jackson still has his share of haters and detractors. Typically, they’re nothing more than jealous fans from other teams with their buffalo wing-stained jerseys or little yellow towels in a bunch.

Haters gonna hate, but the football-educated know that numero ocho es en fuego.

This may be the first season that the eye test, the numbers, and the passer rating are all in perfect agreement. Jackson is currently the best quarterback (and player) in the NFL.

If he continues this trajectory for the final seven games of the regular season, Jackson will have a stranglehold on a 3rd MVP award. The only player who seems capable of wresting it away from him now would be his teammate, Derrick Henry.

Simultaneously, it would make him a shoo-in for Canton on the first ballot.

Yes. I said it. Lamar Jackson is a lock for the Hall Of Fame. Right now.

Only five other quarterbacks have won the MVP award three times: Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Brett Favre, and Johnny Unitas—all first-ballot Hall Of Famers except Rodgers, who will be once he retires.

If all he does for the rest of the season is stay relatively consistent, Jackson seems poised to join that group–except for one tiny detail the rest of them have in common:

A ring.

With all of Lamar’s accolades and attention nationally, we know it’s a hollow victory here in Baltimore. It doesn’t mean a Federal Hill of beans unless the Ravens win the Super Bowl.

As diehard Ravens fans, of course we want to see him win a 3rd MVP.

Don’t we? Should We? Do we even care?

The prospect of Lamar winning another MVP award makes me feel the same way I felt about the Ravens’ unbeaten pre-season streak.

Not much.

Without a Super Bowl ring to go with it, it’s even a little embarrassing.

I hate to throw the haters a bone, but let’s be honest: the only trophy that matters in the NFL is the Lombardi. The rest is window dressing.

Conversely, Lamar could sputter down the stretch, and a dark horse candidate for MVP with a strong second half could surpass him and win the award. But if Lamar wins in the playoffs and ultimately the Super Bowl, he’ll still be a lock for the Hall Of Fame.

Two MVPs and a ring > three MVPs.

I don’t want to speak for all Ravens fans, but I think most of us would take Lamar winning one Super Bowl over winning the MVP award every year until he retires.

If I had to guess, Lamar would, too. He’s aware that the only thing missing on his resume is a ring, and he’s playing that way.

It was hard to imagine him upping his game from last year’s MVP performance, but that’s precisely what he’s done. He’s now a complete quarterback who excels in every facet of the game.

Lamar is still writing the middle chapters of his story, and incredibly, he’s trending upward. But none of us want to see another MVP season fall short of a championship. I’m still trying to get the bad taste out of my mouth from last year’s AFC Championship Game.

With Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs still standing in the way, the road still goes through Arrowhead. It’s hard for me to put much importance on any regular season Ravens game, provided they win enough to make it to the postseason–which seems likely at this point.

It’s sweet to watch a generational talent at the top of his game, mainly because he’s our guy, but we all know that a championship is the only thing that will take the bitter taste of past playoff defeats away.

The post Jackson’s Hall of Fame-Level Play Bittersweet, For Now appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2024/11/08/street-talk/lamar-jackson-hall-of-fame/