Ravens' Lamar Jackson reveals Christmas drawback of Baltimore being 'good'

With Christmas Day rapidly approaching, the general population is in a mad dash to finalize how they will be spending their holidays, from who they will be seeing to where they will be watching football, with a slate of games – from Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens vs. the Houston Texans to the Pittsburgh Steelers against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs – officially set to debut on Netflix.

… unless, of course, you are one of the players slated to appear in one of the games, then you’re getting ready to show up and show out on the field in front of millions of fans worldwide.

How does it feel to have to celebrate Christman on another day and instead work on the holiday without even the benefit of time and a half? Well, Jackson explained that in his Monday media session, letting reporters know that it’s an unfortunate byproduct of being a very good team.

“I mean, it is. It is. That means we’re good. That means we’re good, but at the same time, I do want to celebrate at home with some time with my family. I don’t want to play on Christmas all the time – not all the time – but no, it’s great,” Jackson noted. “All jokes aside, it’s great. It’s a present for everyone. They get to see us play, and [there will be] a lot of eyes on us, and I believe a lot of people are going to be watching us at the right time.”

Fortunately for Jackson, not only will his MVP case earn a massive audience eager to see him shine on Netflix, but he’s already figured out a way to keep the holiday cheer alive, with his family slated to celebrate the reason for the season on Thursday instead of Wednesday. In the end, all’s well that ends well, especially if he can earn a nice present early next year with another MVP Trophy win.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) scrambles away from Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams (93) during the first quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. — Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

Lamar Jackson is aware of the MVP narrative heading into Christmas

Later in his media session, Jackson was asked what another MVP award would mean for him. Well, while it’s not his number one priority, that would be a Super Bowl win, the honor would be “dope” nonetheless.

“If it [does] happen, it happens, [and] that’d be dope. Three times [winning it], but like you said, I’m not really focused on that. That’s never been my goal, though. Even [with] the first or second one, [winning MVP has] never been my goal. I always want to finish with the championship, but I’ve been falling short. [I] got that accolade, but I still feel like the MVP is a team thing, though, because my teammates [are] helping me get that award, because I always say that I’m not the one catching the passes [or] blocking to help me get these passes off [and] stuff like that. That’s [the] offensive line, tight ends, receivers [and] running backs. It’s everybody, all of us included. I’m trying to win the championship. That’s my biggest goal. That’s been my goal ever since [I was] a little kid, but an MVP in the National Football League – that’s dope. That is dope.”

Does Jackson hear the chatter around the award? Of course, but he isn’t allowing it to impact his season.

“I [have] no other choice but to hear it. I don’t mean to cut you off, but they [are] tagging me in it,” Jackson noted. “You don’t [have] to tag me. You can talk about it all you want, but you want to tag me to get like clickbait because you know sometimes I [will] say something back like, ‘That was stupid.’ It is what it is. I don’t care, though. I really don’t care about the talk [and] the [conversations]. I’m trying to win.”

Will Jackson’s number win out in the end, or will Josh Allen’s narrative hold true? Fans will soon find out.