Ravens Quarterback Lamar Jackson Has Sense Of Urgency to Win Super Bowl, Says GM DeCosta

Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens warms up before a preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Aug. 9, 2024. Scott Taetsch/Getty Images

Moments after the Ravens drafted quarterback Lamar Jackson, he vowed to win a Super Bowl for the franchise.

Jackson has yet to win a title for Baltimore, but he has already been a franchise-changing player by winning two NFL MVP awards in his young career. The Ravens came close to reaching the Super Bowl last year and advanced to the AFC Championship game, where they lost to the eventual champion Kansas City Chiefs 17–10.

This offseason, Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta has seen a renewed focus in Jackson on trying to win a title. DeCosta has also noticed that Jackson is playing the best football of his career.

“He looks really, really fast,” DeCosta said at a press conference on Aug. 29 to discuss the Ravens’ 53-man roster. “He’s throwing the ball extremely well. What I’ve noticed about Lamar really is more of an intangible thing: his urgency as a leader [and] his urgency with other players. He’s just really in tune with the other players every single day in practice. He’s so engaged with the coaches. He’s engaged with his teammates. He’s engaged with me; we talk personnel. We [met] after practice just the other day, talking about personnel.

“He’s got some great ideas and suggestions, and he just really wants to win badly. I’m seeing that. As a player, I’ve always known that [about him], but now, I’m seeing his personality kind of come out more, where I can really get a sense like, ‘This guy is so hyper-focused on this season and really working to get a ring.’”

Jackson has won 62 games and lost 24 since he took over the starting job in 2o18 when Joe Flacco was injured. The Ravens had the best record in the NFL both times when Jackson won the MVP award in 2019 and 2023.

Jackson is also the 11th player in NFL history to win the award multiple times, joining Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Jim Brown, Brett Favre, Johnny Unitas, Patrick Mahomes, Joe Montana, Steve Young, and Kurt Warner.

However, Jackson has not had the same success in the postseason, going just 2–4, which has galvanized his critics. The oddsmakers have the Ravens as one of the favorites to win a Super Bowl this season behind the Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers.

The Ravens have a talented roster with five players—Jackson, inside linebacker Roquan Smith, safety Kyle Hamilton, defensive tackle Justin Madubuike, and fullback Patrick Ricard—who were named to the 2023 Associated Press All-Pro Teams. The team also added four-time Pro Bowl running back Derrick Henry to boost a running game already ranked No. 1 in the NFL last season.

As a result, there is much optimism surrounding the Ravens this season. Baltimore will face one of its biggest tests in the regular-season opener in a rematch against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday, Sept. 5.

“I don’t want to speak for Lamar—but I think we all see an opportunity for us to be a good team this year, and we want to do it this year,” DeCosta said at the Aug. 29 press conference. “There are so many different layers to that. What have we done in the offseason? What are we doing in training camp? How can we be the best team on Sundays? Are there players out there that might help us? Where are we strong? Where are we weak? What can we improve on?

“There are just so many different things, but again, I just feel an urgency with Lamar. It’s great; I love it. That’s how I am, and so I really appreciate that quality in others—just the urge to get better and the daily [urge to] improve on things; that’s how you win as a team.”