Getty Lamar Jackson celebrates against the Texans.
The Baltimore Ravens have a quarterback who is on the right track in Lamar Jackson, and ahead of a new season, he is wasting little time outlining his next steps.
In a recent interview with Peter King of NBC Sports, Jackson opened up about his goals moving forward and the biggest thing he wants to do is make sure he can get over the hump in the postseason. At this point, it’s all Jackson thinks about with regards to his own career and what he wants to do next.
Here’s what King wrote:
“The cast will be a little different this year, and maybe Jackson runs for 900 yards instead of 1,200. But he knows success this year will be getting the Ravens deep into the playoffs. Very deep.
“I think about it a lot, to be honest with you,” he told me near the end of our time. “That’s where I wanna be. That’s when everything gets . . . crucial. It’s tough. I remember LeGarrette Blount DM’d me on Instagram. He was like, you know, playoffs is different from regular season. I’m like, nah. But it is, because it’s win or go home. And I’m tired of going home. I just can’t wait to get back in that same spot and perform at a whole ‘nother level.”
The Ravens have came up short the last few seasons in the playoffs with Jackson at the helm, but it’s clear that he wants to change that narrative and fast.
John Harbaugh Praises Lamar Jackson’s Outlook
Last season, the quarterback was elite and in a class of his own as the best player in the league. But that was then and this is now, and Jackson has some new goals for the coming year. Tops amongst them is winning a Super Bowl. Jackson’s coach John Harbaugh has been impressed with how his mind is working heading into this season.
As he explained in a recent press conference, Jackson has been leading by example and is locked in on his goals for this year.
“Bringing our team to a championship is Lamar’s goal. That’s what I respect about him.”
Harbaugh said:
“He’s very motivated, he’s very determined. He’s worked really hard. He’s really a realist. He really understands what’s required and what he needs to do to take his game to the level that brings our team to a championship. That’s what he wants to do. That’s his whole focus.”
Jackson really wants to win and win big, which his coach loves. It’s nice to see the renewed focus ahead of a new season and just after a great past season.
Lamar Jackson Wants to Win Super Bowl
Recently, Jackson was on ESPN explaining what he feels about his career trajectory and what there is left for him to do in the league. Obviously, there’s plenty on the list, but high on it for Jackson seems to be achieving Super Bowl glory, something he’s watched Patrick Mahomes do this season that likely helped him secure the richest contract in NFL history.
As Jackson said shown by BaltimoreRavens.com, the next step for him is simply to win on the biggest stage of them all, no questions asked.
“I gotta win a Super Bowl.”
Jackson said:
“I gotta win a Super Bowl, I gotta get me where he’s at,” Jackson said on the telecast regarding what he has to do in order to get paid. “It’s a crazy number, nobody has ever dreamed about that. They’ve probably dreamed about it but no one expected that, especially half a million dollars but he deserves it.”
Whether Jackson deserves it or not is a current matter of great debate and public discourse but it’s clear that the quarterback is motivated to prove in the future that he deserves it by winning the biggest trophy of them all. Whether his motivations be money or personal desire for glory, give Jackson credit for outlining what he has to do and going after it.
Lamar Jackson Wants Patrick Mahomes’ Career Trajectory
Speaking recently, Jackson explained what he wanted for the next step in his career, and he admitted it would be nice for him to do what the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback did recently in terms of being a league MVP who then manages to win the Super Bowl.
.@Lj_era8 wants to follow @PatrickMahomes path. Winning MVP in his first full season starting and then winning the Super Bowl.
“I’d love to follow that path of MVP then Super Bowl! That’d be a great path to follow!”
Jackson has seemingly done everything a quarterback can in the early part of his career short of having playoff success. That’s the next step for the Ravens as well, as they have struggled to get over the hump in recent years. Like it or not, that will continue to define Jackson and the team in the short term. He’s not above saying he wishes to accomplish what a rival has at this point.
Jackson should enter 2020 with as good a chance of anyone to make these goals a reality, and with a positive, motivated mindset like this, there’s no telling how far he could go.
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‘I’m Tired of Going Home:’ Lamar Jackson Ready to End Playoff Struggle