Jackson, Ravens Poised for Bounce Back Year

Jackson, Ravens Poised for Bounce Back Year

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It has been a long offseason in the NFL as teams across the league aim to better their squad to make a run at the Super Bowl. However, one team that has stood out is the Baltimore Ravens.

Last season the Ravens lost their week 18 matchup to the Pittsburgh Steelers at home, finishing with an 8-9 record, finishing third in the AFC North, which made them miss the playoffs.

A big reason why the Ravens missed the playoffs last year was mainly due to Covid issues and injuries. The Ravens were hammered with injuries as multiple key players went down, such as pro bowl cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Marlon Humphrey, running back Gus Edwards, pro bowl offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley, J.K. Dobbins, then eventually pro bowl quarterback Lamar Jackson went down, causing him to miss the final four games of the season.

No team last season was affected more by injuries than the Baltimore Ravens, which hurt their chances of making the playoffs and having a chance at making the Super Bowl.

This offseason, the Ravens have been busy as they have made vital moves such as signing safety Marcus Williams to a five-year deal to help bolster their secondary, defensive tackle Michael Pierce, offensive tackle Morgan Moses, defensive end Calais Campbell, and two-time pro bowl cornerback Kyle Fuller along with drafting highly touted safety Kyle Hamilton out of Notre Dame in the first round.

Along with those moves, Jackson has been working in the offseason on getting right for next season. However, it seems like there is some uncertainty coming his way.

A survey came out this past Monday with league executives, players, and coaches around the league involved in it, ranking their top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL with Jackson not present, which came to the shock of many football fans, including myself, who believe that Jackson should’ve made the top 10.

The 2022 NFL quarterback rankings according to league executives, coaches and players that were surveyed around the league. This was conducted by ESPN, however, the full list of the top 10 was posted by theScore curtesy of Get Up (Photo by theScore) via Instagram.

It seems like many have forgotten how good the two-time pro bowler is. Jackson has been a massive part of the Ravens’ rise the past few years, including finishing first in the AFC his second NFL season, where he won MVP and leading the Ravens to their first playoff win under him the year after.

Although the Ravens didn’t have a great season last year, Jackson was not the main cause and never was. Instead, the star quarterback did all he could with a battered and bruised Ravens team and an offensive line that didn’t give him much help, leading to him going down with an injury and missing the remainder of the year.

However, this may be a good thing for Jackson. Some players thrive under the underdog mentality, and that may motivate Jackson to do more incredible things for the Ravens this season and for the Ravens to have a bounce-back year, possibly winning their division and going on a deep playoff run.

With the Ravens and Jackson being overlooked, don’t be surprised if this team exceeds expectations and thrives under the mentality of having a chip on their shoulder.

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