Lamar Jackson is a repeat NFL MVP. He might be the most superhuman playmaker in the game. And yet some coaches, executives and scouts see him as … the sixth-best quarterback in football? Jackson technically clocked in at No. 4 among all signal-callers in ESPN’s annual poll of NFL personnel, behind three of his vaunted AFC foes, but at least one voter had him outside the top five altogether, suggesting the Baltimore Ravens star is inferior to almost a half-dozen quarterbacks.
How, exactly, is this possible? It’s not for a lack of prolific production, that’s for sure: Among qualifying passers, only Patrick Mahomes has a better quarterback rating since 2018, the year Jackson arrived as a first-round draft pick. Only Mahomes and fellow NFL MVP Josh Allen have more combined wins during that span. And when it comes to running the ball, no one comes close: Jackson’s 6,173 career yards on the ground are far and away the best mark of any quarterback since he took the NFL stage.
So what is the issue then? How could anyone slot Jackson as a non-top-five quarterback entering 2025?
It’s actually fairly simple: Playoffs.
There’s no clear reason other than postseason performance that Jackson belongs outside the top-five conversation. But if you’re going to pick a reason, it’s actually quite valid. Consider the three quarterbacks officially ranked ahead of Jackson in ESPN’s poll: Mahomes, Allen and Joe Burrow. Mahomes is an anomaly, of course, with three Super Bowl rings and another two Super Bowl appearances. But Allen and Burrow are also more accomplished than Jackson in the big-game department:
- Allen: 7 playoff wins, 2 conference championship appearances
- Burrow: 5 playoff wins, 2 conference championship appearances
- Jackson: 3 playoff wins, 1 conference championship appearance
Football is a team sport, of course; Allen and Burrow didn’t win those games on their own. That said, both Allen and Burrow have posted markedly better numbers in their respective playoff games. Jackson’s more recent playoff action has been promising — he’s thrown seven touchdowns against just two interceptions in his last two playoff runs — but on the whole, he’s struggled to control the ball at a much higher rate than some of the NFL’s other powers at the position.
Take, for example, Jalen Hurts, who didn’t even sniff the top five in ESPN’s poll, coming in at No. 9 months after winning Super Bowl MVP: The Philadelphia Eagles captain has totaled just four turnovers in his postseason career; that’s nearly one-third of Jackson’s mark (11 career playoff turnovers). It’s probably not a coincidence Hurts’ Eagles have also reached more conference title games and Super Bowls, even if Hurts doesn’t get the same “wow” recognition as Jackson for regular-season acrobatics.
Consider the career playoff production of each of ESPN’s top 10 quarterbacks since 2018, and you might actually find yourself less inclined to vouch for Jackson and more appalled that Hurts barely made the cut:
Playoff production among top QBs since 2018
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Cody Benjamin
Look, this doesn’t change the fact that Jackson is a special quarterback. We had him at roughly No. 3 among all quarterbacks when sorting all 32 NFL starters into tiers; in our eyes, he’s one of just six “transcendent talents” at the position — unteachably capable of championship-level stuff. It still feels like it’s a matter of when, not if, he’ll help get the Ravens back over the hump, and he’s often the single biggest reason John Harbaugh oversees a perennial contender.
Until he finally translates his fall magic into a steady string of meaningful winter victories, however, the skeptics will remain.
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Author: Cody Benjamin
July 14, 2025 | 12:11 pm
