Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson likely put a bow on the MVP race with his brilliant performance during his team’s blowout win over the Miami Dolphins this past weekend.
Jackson went 18-for-21 with 321 yards and five touchdowns while also carrying the ball six times for 35 yards in what ended up being a 56-19 romp that clinched the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC for the Ravens.
The 26-year-old was considered by many to be the MVP favorite heading into Week 17, so after that, he is almost certainly the frontrunner, and barring any unforeseen circumstances in the regular-season finale, Jackson will probably win his second MVP award.
But don’t tell that to former NFL star cornerback and current Fox Sports analyst Richard Sherman.
Speaking on FS1’s Undisputed this week, Sherman said he is still not convinced that Jackson should take home the honor and believes that San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey is actually more deserving of the hardware.
While Sherman does make a decent point that Jackson’s overall passing numbers may not look MVP-worthy (he has only thrown 24 touchdown passes this season), Jackson boasts a passer rating of 102.7 and, most importantly, has led the Ravens to the best record in football at 13-3.
Remember: the award is not necessarily about statistics. It is given to the player who was most valuable to their respective team that season, and as great as McCaffrey has been in 2023, it seems fairly difficult to argue that he has been more valuable to the 49ers than Jackson has been to the Ravens.
Sherman also says that he does not think Jackson’s run this season is the same as his 2019 campaign, where he won his first MVP award after leading the league with 36 touchdown tosses and setting a single-season rushing record for quarterbacks with 1,206 yards on the ground.
While that may be true, it doesn’t discount the fact that Jackson’s value to Baltimore this year cannot be understated, and it’s why he will almost certainly win his second MVP trophy.
The Ravens will take on the Pittsburgh Steelers next weekend in what will be an otherwise meaningless game for the club. Whether or not Lamar Jackson plays remains to be seen.
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