NFL analyst sounds alarm for Ravens fans over Lamar Jackson's comment ahead of Chiefs game
Lamar Jackson believes he was not 100% healthy for last season's AFC Championship Game. On Thursday, hours before the Kickoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs, this quote by the Baltimore Ravens quarterback to the Washington Post's Kent Bobb after a practice in June resurfaced:
“How I’m feeling right now, I wish I was feeling like this, body-wise, in the AFC Championship. We would have won the game. I would have been able to move around for my guys... We wouldn’t have even had to throw the ball.”
That can be backed up by his performance (20 of 37 passes completed, one touchdown, and one interception), but it has proven controversial. NFL analyst Nick Wright was one of those dismayed by the claim ahead of the Chiefs-Ravens clash, saying on First Things First:
"I cannot believe Lamar said this. And if I were a Ravens fan, I would be concerned. I think this is a wild quote... I think it's how he feels and that does not give me confidence that this year is going to be different."
Lamar Jackson claims to have no relationship with Patrick Mahomes ahead of Kickoff Game
That, however, has not been Lamar Jackson's only hot take as of late. When asked by reporters what he thought of his counterpart Patrick Mahomes, he said he had no relationship with him, nor any other quarterback for that matter - it was just business, competition for him:
“I don’t take anything from [Mahomes], I just play my game. But he’s a great quarterback. He has the accolades to prove it, and he’s made things happen on the field that makes his team successful.”
He also refused to consider the Kickoff Game "revenge":
"Anybody we've played, no matter if we've beat them or lost to them in previous years, I just want to win."
Mahomes, meanwhile had this to say about Jackson:
"He's a guy that competes every single week. You can tell he cares. You can tell he wants to go out there and win... And I think that's something that's truly what it really takes to be a great quarterback in this league."
The Kickoff Game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens started at 8:40 PM ET/7:40 PM CT on NBC after a short rain delay.