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Lamar Jackson is a very special talent, which is something we were all reminded off – as if we even needed a reminder – Monday night when he absolutely tore up the Rams in a 45-6 win for the Baltimore Ravens.
Jackson was just ridiculous Monday night. He finished with five touchdown passes, which is a NFL record for a QB in his MNF debut. He also rushed for 95 yards and made the Rams defense look silly until he was pulled from the game early in the fourth quarter.
It was just really fun to watch Jackson do his thing and have fun doing his thing at such a high level.
What makes this second-year QB so great – besides his ability to make incredible throws and also torch a defense with his feet – is his competitive spirit. This guy wants to win as much as a Tom Brady or a Kobe Bryant or a Michael Jordan wants to win. He goes 110 MPH on every play and wants to make his opponents pay each time he takes a snap. He wants to compete so hard and rip out your heart every chance he gets, no matter the score of the game. That’s how legends in all different sports do it.
Losing is his enemy. And he appears to really hate his enemy.
Remember that time against the Seahawks this season when he told John Harbaugh that he wanted to go for it on fourth down and then ran for a touchdown on the play? That’s the type of confidence and killer instinct that separates the greats from really goods. And Jackson is well on his way to becoming one of the greats.
Jackson has wins over Deshaun Watson, Russell Wilson, and Tom Brady this season. Now he has a huge win over what was a good Rams defense that looked like a shell of itself as Jackson and the Ravens marched up and down the field at will on Monday night.
Baltimore’s offense right now feels like it’s pretty unstoppable. They stretch a defense out and then kill you with a running game featuring Jackson and Mark Ingram, who is running with such power and confidence right now. Want to stop the run? Then Jackson beats you with his arm or scrambles out of the pocket and picks up huge first downs with his feet.
He’s truly better than everyone else right now and should be the top name in any NFL MVP debates.
The Ravens are now 9-2 and host the 10-1 San Francisco 49ers next Sunday, which should be a fun one.
But really, any game with Jackson in it is a fun one, and NFL fans are lucky to be able to watch such an immense talent doing his thing.
Monday’s biggest winner: Marcus Peters.
Peters, who was traded from the Rams to the Ravens earlier this season, had some fun playing against his former team. He picked off Jared Goff late in the blowout win and then was seen appearing to mock Jalen Ramsey, the star cornerback the Rams traded for shortly after saying goodbye to Peters. Oh, and the two also had some words after the game. What a wild night in Los Angeles.
Quick hits: Jason Garrett MNF jokes… Knicks pull a Knicks… Heat break out beautiful jerseys… And more!
– Dez Bryant was one of many NFL fans to make a Jason Garrett joke after the Ravens went for it on 4th down early in Monday night’s game.
– The Knicks went out of their way Monday to shoot down Richard Jefferson’s claim that he retired instead of playing for the Knicks. Not a great look for the Knicks, but what else is new?
– The Miami Heat unveiled their ‘Vice Wave’ jerseys and they are spectacular.
– Booger McFarland made no sense on this call during MNF.
(Follow me on Twitter at @anezbitt. It might change your life. Just don’t tell me about your fantasy team.)