Lamar Jackson has enjoyed one of the most successful starts to a young career in NFL history during his first three seasons. Playoff success, however, has eluded the Baltimore Ravens signal-caller.
Baltimore is 30-7 with Jackson as a starter under center in three years. But it's 0-2 in the postseason the past two years.
The notion that Jackson can't win when the competition increases in January is something the QB is out to change Sunday afternoon against the Tennessee Titans.
"I'm definitely trying to erase that narrative. That's No. 1 on my mind, for sure," Jackson said Wednesday, via Daniel Oyefusi of the Baltimore Sun.
The narrative surrounding Jackson's playoff performances isn't simply that the Ravens lost two games, it's how those losses occurred. With the QB averaging three giveaways per game.
Jackson's regular-season starts: 30-7 W-L record; 30.6 points per game; 206.0 rush yards per game; 1.9 sacks per game; 1.0 giveaway per game.
Jackson's postseason: 0-2 W-L record; 14.5 points per game; 137.5 rush yards per game; 5.5 sacks per game; 3.0 giveaway per game.
The excruciatingly small playoff sample-size would suggest the reaction to Jackson's playoff struggles is outsized at best. Instant postseason success isn't a prerequisite for a phenomenal career. After all, Peyton Manning started his HOF career by going 0-3 in the postseason.
Jackson knows he needs to play better Sunday for the Ravens to beat the AFC South Champs and to put to bed chatter that he can't get it done when the league's riffraff expired and all that is left are quality football teams.
"It's 'win or go home' right now,” Jackson said. “I want to win regardless. I don't really care what people got to say."