LAMAR JACKSON: MVP

Raheim Briddell, Staff Writer

February 7, 2024

Have you ever had dreams of being the NFL’s Most Valuable Player?

Not just anyone can be the MVP, though. To be the MVP of the league you have to be the best of the best, and you have to have the greatest impact on your team. This is why we mostly see quarterbacks winning the award because the people who vote – and most fans – generally feel like the quarterback is the most important position. This is why Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and Aaron Rodgers have all been the recent winners of the league’s MVP.

All of these players are Super Bowl-caliber quarterbacks who have proven that they can win in big moments. While Lamar has not made it to the Super Bowl yet like these other names, he is no doubt capable of taking the Ravens to that next level, and the season he had this year is why he should be the league MVP for 2023-24.

This season he led the Ravens to a 14-3 record, the league’s best, blew out likely rookie of the year C.J. Stroud and the Texans 34-10 in the divisional round of the playoffs and led his team to the AFC championship game. On the season he had 4,499 all-purpose yards, which included 821 rushing yards with 5 rushing touchdowns. He threw for 3,678 yards, a career-high, and had 24 touchdown passes with only 7 interceptions. Throughout the season he and the Ravens were elite and posted huge wins over other top teams including the Seahawks, Lions, Dolphins, and Forty-Niners, all playoff teams.

There is no doubt that he is the most important player on his team in the league. The other candidates – Christian McCaffrey, Josh Allen, Brock Purdy, and Dak Prescott – are amazing players at their position, but none of them means as much to his team as Lamar.

Despite being successful and elite since his first year in the league in 2018 when he was drafted 32nd overall by the Ravens, Lamar never seems to get the respect he deserves. Every year he’s doubted and when he beats top teams and other top quarterbacks, there is still doubt about him. Over the past six years, he’s beaten Mahomes and the Chiefs, Allen and the Bills, and he is 2-0 against Tom Brady and the Patriots in the regular season. This year, Lamar and the Ravens also took down another MVP candidate, quarterback Brock Purdy, and the NFC’s best team and Super Bowl entrant, the Forty-Niners.

Lamar Jackson has proven that he is the man; he is the top dog when it comes to playing the quarterback position. In just six years he has accomplished more than half of the big-name quarterbacks on rosters today. A look at his numbers over this time proves this. According to Jeff Kerr of CBS.com, In his six years in the league, Lamar is the only player in NFL history to throw a touchdown of 75-plus yards and rush for a touchdown of 75-plus yards in a single game. He also has seven games with 200-plus passing yards and 100-plus rushing yards, the most by any quarterback in NFL history.

Another stat that matters when it comes to Lamar is how the Ravens have done without him during his time with the team. The Ravens have posted just a 4-9 record without Lamar – which includes a first-round playoff loss last year when Tyler Huntley took over at QB. Ultimately, Lamar is the most important player on his team, and in the league.

About the Contributor

Raheim Briddell, Staff Writter

Have you ever been asked what your school is like or how would you describe it? You know, a time when your friends who don’t go to the same school as you ask how you really feel about the place. How would you describe it? When asked what it is like to be a student at Paint Branch, freshman Raheim Briddell describes it as “easy, a lot, and freedom.” He says it is “a lot” because it’s not hard, but it's a lot to take in since it’s a bigger school than his middle school and a new environment. Raheim says school is “easy, because it’s not really hard.” He notes “freedom ”because as a freshman he feels like there's a good amount of freedom at PB. One example of this freedom he notes is, “We get to leave for lunch.” Raheim likes to experience new things and likes to travel. In the future he says that he wants to leave the DMV, the area he was born and raised in, because, “I don’t want to be here for the rest of my life.” He adds, “I want to experience new things and travel the world.” He also says that when he has the chance he wants to go to Niagara Falls to see the waterfalls. In terms of what Raheim likes and his personality, he is an active guy who plays football and likes to hang out with friends. He likes the summer because he doesn’t have to worry about school and hangs out a lot. As for food, he loves a quarter pounder from McDonalds and answers that if he was stuck on an island and had to eat one food everyday he would choose a burger. He loves music and says his favorite artist is Never Broke Again Youngboy and his favorite song from him is “Solar eclipse.” He also likes Baby Jamo and said, “Rap like Baby Jamo would get me in a good mood if I’m like sad or something happened.” He also said the GOAT rapper is Jay-Z. Raheim likes sports a lot and his favorite sports are football and basketball. His favorite team in football is the Baltimore Ravens and his favorite player in football is Lamar Jackson. He also has a favorite player in basketball which is Lebron James and his favorite team is the Lakers because of Lebron. Another interesting fact about Raheim is that he says that,“I want to be remembered as a nice person and a hard worker.” This is an interesting fact about him because some people might say the best basketball or football player in the world but he just wants to be remembered as a nice person who always tried his best. He also likes the color blue and he always loved that color since he was a kid. By: Naher Ghebru

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LAMAR JACKSON: MVP

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