Criticism of Baltimore Ravens franchise quarterback Lamar Jackson usually takes one of two forms: “He can’t win when it counts” or “He only makes plays with his legs, not with his arm.”
Often, the two narratives appear alongside each other. ESPN’s prolifically polarizing pundit, Stephen A. Smith, has now added his own special individual twist to the first one.
Smith believes that Lamar’s biggest obstacle left to overcome is actually Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes himself.
Stephen A. Smith on Lamar Jackson
“[If] you’ve got a sorry team around you like Matthew Stafford had for 12 years, we’re able to appreciate your greatness…and say “that ain’t on you”. We haven’t been able to say that about Lamar Jackson” pic.twitter.com/iY6HSnXzTn
— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) September 2, 2024
“How come you can’t get it done, when you’re going up against this brother?” Smith asked rhetorically on First Take.
“We’ve seen you do it against everybody else…It ain’t about AFC title game appearances anymore or playoff appearances anymore with Lamar Jackson. Hell, it ain’t even about the Super Bowl.
“It’s about one dude that repeatedly stands in your way. His name is Patrick Mahomes.”
Well, as usual, Smith was exhausting to watch while he made his points, some of which were salient.
Yes, Mahomes is Jackson’s biggest postseason roadblock right now, but you can say the same thing for Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, and every other leading AFC contender’s starting quarterback.
Also, while the media (especially Smith’s employer ESPN) loves to emphasize individual match-ups, as they help in marketing, these are still team games we’re talking about here.
The NFL is 11 on 11, plus another set of 11 of 11, not 1 on 1. Two opposing starting quarterbacks are literally never on the field at the same time.
Smith reduces all this to the superficiality of a promo poster. Of course, the most easily dismissed of Smith’s points is the one regarding the Super Bowl.
It actually IS all about the Super Bowl—always. No Baltimore Ravens fan would have an issue with his team winning the Super Bowl but not having gotten past Patrick Mahomes to get there.
That’s a pretty ridiculous assertion to think otherwise.