Much like last season, the Baltimore Ravens are considered to be one of the best all-around teams in the league, with arguably the NFL’s best offense led by two-time NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson.
Although Baltimore has been one of the elite teams in the league, the Ravens aren’t without their flaws, especially when facing formidable opponents, like the division-rival Pittsburgh Steelers and defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Outside of the fluke losses to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 2 and the Cleveland Browns a few weeks ago, the Chiefs and Steelers have been the only teams to give Baltimore a lot of trouble, making it challenging to play the way they want to play, especially offensively.
A lot of the blame has landed at Jackson’s feet, as he hasn’t been the same player when facing the Chiefs and Steelers, which Ryan Clark made clear via NFL on ESPN.
“It’s when he plays his biggest team rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and his biggest individual rival, Patrick Mahomes, that he stops being Lamar Jackson, sometimes,” Clark said.
“It’s when he plays his biggest team rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and his biggest individual rival, Patrick Mahomes, that he stops being Lamar Jackson, sometimes.”@realrclark25 on Lamar playing his rivals 👀 pic.twitter.com/Ew7HZIccy0
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 18, 2024
Even though the Ravens are coming off a disappointing loss to their division rivals on the road, Baltimore will be playoff-bound outside of an epic second-half collapse.
The real question is whether Jackson can be the same dominant player in the playoffs this season and prove why he is arguably the best quarterback in the league right now by coming through in the biggest moments in the postseason.
