Since entering the league in 2018, Lamar Jackson has taken the Baltimore Ravens to a whole new level. His dynamic play making ability has given defensive coordinators nightmares in terms of creating a scheme against him in his first two years as a starter in the league. Jackson even took home league MVP back in 2019 leading the Ravens to a league best 14-2 record that season. But what seems to be the biggest obstacle for Baltimore to overcome is the postseason. Many people have expected Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes to be the next big quarterback rivalry in the AFC, but Jackson is yet to reach the AFC Championship. Sure these two have had their battles in the regular season but nothing in the postseason yet. So who’s to blame for Baltimore’s lack of Success in the postseason? 

The haters will use this as an excuse to point fingers at Lamar Jackson. Lamar would fill in for the veteran and the last quarterback to win a Super Bowl in Baltimore, Joe Flacco, in a game against the Buffalo Bills in the 2018 season. Jackson showed signs of greatness in his rookie year, but was never really the starter, as this was still Joe Flacco’s team. The Ravens went 10-6 that season, finishing the regular season under Jackson. Baltimore played the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card round. Baltimore had upset LA 22-10 just two weeks prior in week 16. This outcome was different however. As the Chargers knocked the Ravens out of the playoffs by a score of 23-1. Jackson seemed to collapse under the pressure of the postseason as a rookie, as he was the youngest quarterback to ever start in an NFL playoff game. The next season was straight up special however, and deserves an entry of its own.

Lamar Jackson had a monster year in 2019. This could go all day describing how special this year was, but let’s try and keep this short. Jackson became just the second (the first being Tom Brady) to be the unanimous MVP of the league. Jackson also broke the record for the most rushing yards in a single season by quarterback with 1,206 yards on the ground, breaking Mike Vick’s record. Jackson also led the Ravens to a 14-2 record as stated previously, and beat teams like the 49ers, Patriots, and Rams in that season. Jackson and the Ravens were the favorites to win the Super Bowl that year. They had just been so dominant in the regular season to the point where it seemed like nobody could beat them. Every fan for that matter was wrong. As the Tennessee Titans, who had just shocked the Patriots in the wild card round, knocked out the Ravens by a score of 28-12. And this was a game where the Ravens really should have scored more points. Jackson threw for 365 yards on 59 attempts, on top of throwing a touchdown and a pair of interceptions. He also ran for 143 yards on the ground, but couldn’t score. The AFC Championship that year could have been Jackson vs Mahomes, but the Titans had other plans. 

Coming off an embarrassing way to end an MVP season, Jackson and the Ravens were hungry. Blowing out the Browns in week 1 of the 2020 season, the Ravens seemed to be picking up where they left off. Then they started to decline. A loss on Sunday night to the underachieving Patriots was a real red flag for this Ravens team. They didn’t look like they had what it took to be a playoff team and were on the outside looking in. They were sitting at 6-3, but the rest of the conference was still better than them. The Ravens didn’t look good at all against New England. A loss in overtime to the Titans was another bad look for Baltimore. With their playoff hopes looking to be slim in week 14, as the Ravens took on the Browns on Monday night. This would end up being arguably the game of the year, as Jackson threw for 163 yards and a touchdown on top of rushing for 124 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His heroics in this game put the Ravens back in the playoff mix, as they secured their spot in week 17. Baltimore took on the Titans in the Wild Card round. Now the Ravens and Titans have arguably the one of the most underrated rivalries in the league. A lot of bad blood between these teams over the years has led up to this moment. Baltimore went down 10-0 early. Then Lamar Jackson took over. Jackson finished the game with 179 yards in the air and 146 yards on the ground, including the 48 yard touchdown run that was all over ESPN the next day. Lamar had silenced the haters! He had finally gotten his first playoff win. But the haters were able to come out again the next week, as the Ravens were squashed by the Bills 17-3. So who is to blame for this lack of postseason success?

Now there are many fingers that could be pointed here. But there should be one finger pointed in the divisional game, and it should be pointed at offensive coordinator Greg Roman. His play calling in this game was terrible. Lamar only ran for 34 yards this game and was sacked 3 times.  The question is why Lamar running wasn’t their top option. Though Buffalo seemed to slow them down a little bit, why would Baltimore stop running the ball? Lamar is one of the toughest guys in the league to tackle going downfield. Especially late in the game. Baltimore ran the ball just eight more times than they passed. Lamar’s pick six to end the game didn’t help. Buffalo’s strength on defense is their secondary. Baltimore’s strength on offense is the run game. So why wouldn’t they run that ball more based on the matchup? Overall, Baltimore’s lack of receiving help this year hasn’t been all that great. Marquise Brown had a down year this year, and he was the number one target. Baltimore’s defense is just fine and is one of the more underrated units in the league. Baltimore’s front office needs to go ahead and grab a top receiver in free agency, draft a top receiving prospect, or trade for a big name. If they do that, they will win the AFC next year.