It has been more than a thousand days since Lamar Jackson last played in an NFL playoff game. Twenty additional should not pose any issues. The quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens characterized himself as “hyped” and “antsy” for the team’s 2024 postseason debut, according to Clifton Brown and Ryan Mink on the team’s official website. The AFC Divisional round begins on Saturday late afternoon at M&T Bank Stadium with the Baltimore (13-4) taking on the Houston Texans (4:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN).
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Jackson stated, “We took a little break to reorganize and get back on track.” “I’m excited. I’m restless.”
That should come as no surprise given Jackson’s professional background; his lack of postseason success is the only real complaint that can be made about his career thus far. In his four postseason starts, Jackson has a 1-3 record and has never had a passer rating higher than 78.8 at any point throughout the four games. Jackson’s last tournament experience in 2021 was bittersweet: he scored a touchdown and had 136 running yards in a Wild Card upset victory over Tennessee, but he was limited to only 196 before exiting the game owing to an injury sustained in the Divisional defeat to Buffalo.
The moment for redemption has been long overdue. Unexpectedly, Baltimore missed the playoffs in the next season, and he was unable to play in Cincinnati during the previous season due to more medical issues. Despite a strong relieving performance from backup Tyler Huntley, the reigning conference champs prevailed 24-17 and couldn’t be stopped.
Jackson won’t have played on the field for almost three whole weeks by the time the game starts on Saturday. Jackson was sidelined for the Ravens’ regular season finale versus Pittsburgh, which came before the team received a first-round bye. From a purple standpoint, that game was pointless since Jackson scored five touchdowns in a 56-19 thrashing of Miami on New Year’s Eve, which also secured top-seed status.
With the Ravens on a six-game winning streak going into the Week 18 finale, Jackson would have been nearly happy to play over the weekend.
