Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken says Lamar Jackson has yet to reach his full potential.
Monken said there is a give and take when it comes to adjusting or changing plays at the line of scrimmage. Some quarterbacks frequently change plays down to the last detail, while others are reluctant to make decisions apart from the play caller.
“Lamar does want that, and Lamar’s gotten more and more comfortable with that, and he’s really good at it,” said Monken. “We’ve just got to continue down that road. And with that, I think he’s only going to continue ... and I still think he’s just scratching the surface of, really, where he’s headed. And it may not statistically show up that way, but I just know he’s only scratched the surface, in terms of ... not only his diligence but throwing the football, progressing [through his reads], all those things that he always knew he was capable of, but now it’s really starting to come around.”
Jackson established himself as a dual-threat quarterback early in his career, becoming the first quarterback since Michael Vick to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season in 2019, then repeating the feat in 2020. But in 2024-25 he had a career season as a passer: He set career highs in completions (316), yards (4,172), and touchdowns (41). He also threw just four interceptions, the lowest number since his rookie season. He also led the league in average yards per pass attempt (8.8) and in passer rating (119.6); both those numbers were also career highs. He added 915 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
Monken said that while Jackson was certainly deserving of a third MVP award this year, other players, such as Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Saquon Barkley, and Derrick Henry were also deserving. He said he does not like to compare elite quarterbacks because all NFL quarterbacks are elite.
“Comparison is the thief of joy,” he said. “Why can’t people just be great? I don’t know why people have to try and decide who the best of all time is in the NBA—which seems like it’s ongoing—or who the best quarterback is when they’re elite. First of all, if you’re in the NFL, you’re elite, but I don’t care. If you’re a starter in the NFL, you’re elite. You’re one of the best in the world. You’re one of 32. That’s pretty freaking elite to me—32 in the world at what you do.”
But Monken said Jackson has unique traits that make him great, including his field vision and ability to find throwing windows, his ability to escape pressure, and his accuracy throwing off-platform. He said Jackson has a unique ability to keep himself under control while escaping the pocket, whether he takes off running, finds an open receiver, or throws the ball away. He also praised his precision passing, noting that there were very few examples of passes where he caused a drop, or missed a throw outright.
Above all, Monken said the two-time MVP is humble, but competitive. “I’ve been around some really humble superstars,” he said. “Lamar is [an] unbelievably humble superstar. That doesn’t mean he’s not competitive, doesn’t want to be great but he ... just wants to win. But he also knows that him playing well in the position is gonna greatly increase that, because we all know your chances of winning go exponentially [up] if you have a great quarterback ... and good players around.”
