Lamar Jackson reveals what ‘bothers’ him after winning second MVP

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson insisted this offseason that he doesn’t care what the critics say about aspects of his career, such as the fact that he possesses an overall playoff record of 2-4.

Jackson nevertheless understands what he must do to change such conversations.

“I haven’t gotten a Super Bowl yet. That’s the only thing that bothers me,” Jackson recently admitted, as shared by Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic. “I don’t care what (naysayers) say because they still talk about Michael Jordan, they still talk about LeBron (James). They still talk about Steph Curry. Those guys got championships. I don’t have one yet. So it’s like, ‘All right, cool, you’re going to talk about me.’ I need to get a championship, a few championships.”

Jackson, 27, officially became a two-time MVP winner in February shortly after he and the Ravens fell to superstar signal-caller Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. While Jackson has yet to guide Baltimore to a Super Bowl appearance, Mahomes will enter Thursday night’s regular-season opener involving the two clubs as a three-time champion and a three-time Super Bowl MVP.

“That was us,” Jackson said about Baltimore suffering a frustrating 17-10 home loss to Kansas City in this past January’s conference title game. “That was our doing. Those guys had won championships. Those guys, I feel, they knew how to come out of those situations. We didn’t. I felt we were kind of immature. It was like, ‘We’ve got to make something happen fast,’ and we got out of our bodies. We didn’t need to. We can’t get frustrated with adversity.”

As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Ravens second among the betting favorites behind only the Chiefs (+300) at +550 odds to represent the AFC in Super Bowl LIX. Jackson indicated he won’t be thinking about such forecasts or about his legacy compared to Mahomes’ when the two face off at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Thursday evening.

“I don’t try and tell stories about my past,” Jackson said. “I’m living in the moment right now. I remember everything that has gone on — how I felt at the time and all of that. But right now, I focus on what’s in front of me.”

What’s in front of Jackson this week is an opportunity to show the football world he and his teammates have put the Ravens’ latest postseason disappointment well behind them