Rob Gronkowski Sees Ravens Winning Super Bowl, Lamar Jackson Capturing Third MVP

Jackson falling 67 spots to No. 69 in the NFL Top 100 is old news, but it was revisited Thursday as the months-long countdown of the rankings concluded.

NFL.com’s Jeremy Bergman looked at five things the voters – the players themselves – got wrong. He included Jackson being ranked behind quarterbacks Trevor Lawence of the Jacksonville Jaguars (No. 62), Bo Nix of the Broncos (No. 59), and Jalen Hurts of the Eagles (No. 56) among the miscues.

However, Bergman concluded that the voters “may have actually gotten that one right.“

“Sure, Lawrence was an MVP finalist, Nix piloted the AFC’s top team, and Hurts threw a career-high 25 touchdowns, but why the disrespect to Jackson?, the townspeople cry out in the dark,” Bergman wrote. “Of the QB questions that arise from this year’s players poll, this one, to me, is the least vexing.

“Lamar had his most un-Lamar-like season (aside from the injuries which seem to rankle every one of his campaigns). Hampered by ailments, he logged a career-low 349 rushing yards, led Baltimore to more losses (seven) than wins (six), was 21st of 33 qualifying QBs in expected points added per dropback, per Next Gen Stats, and came up a Tyler Loop miss short of the postseason. Jackson’s air game was more explosive than ever (league-high 13.3 yards per catch), but otherwise, the Ravens star did not live up to his own standard, whereas the playoff-bound campaigns led by Lawrence and Nix were welcome surprises, and Hurts was the steady captain of a turbulent Eagles campaign.”

So, once again, Jackson is held to a different standard than his peers.

Mahomes had the worst statistical season of his career and went 6-8, yet his drop (from No. 5 to No. 18) wasn’t nearly as precipitous as Jackson’s. Likewise, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow was limited to just eight games because of injury, yet he came in at No. 44, a fall from No. 6 but still 25 spots ahead of Jackson.

Overall, 13 quarterbacks were ranked above Jackson.

It should go without saying that there aren’t 68 players or 13 quarterbacks better than Jackson. As Minter said on “The Lounge” podcast in July, “there may not even be one other player in the league better than Lamar.”