The Baltimore Ravens selected quarterback Lamar Jackson in the first round of the 2018 draft at No. 32 overall. There were plenty of questions surrounding Jackson’s ability to play quarterback at the next level, but quickly put all doubts to bed behind a 2019 season that saw him win the second-ever unanimous-MVP in NFL history.
During his 2023 NFL Scouting Combine media availability, Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh was asked about his first impressions of Jackson when he was first drafted. He called the former Louisville star humble, determined, and a competitor, and also went into detail about Jackson missing the team’s Wild Card loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
“Way back when? My first impression of Lamar Jackson when we drafted him? Humble, determined, competitor. The first thing he said was, ‘I’m bringing a Super Bowl to Baltimore,’ and I’m a believer. I believe that’s going to happen. Kind of getting back to your question … Things are tough; it’s a tough league. It’s tough to win every game. Just talking to the guys, my good friends in Philly – my good friends in Kansas City won the Super Bowl. My good friends in Philly lost the Super Bowl. My good friends in Philly? You’d think they didn’t win a game this year right now; that’s how they feel, that’s how it kind of works, and that’s how we felt. That’s how we felt after our Cincinnati game, but everybody does their best. Nobody does more than Lamar. I promise you – to your other question back there; I didn’t mean to skip over it – but if he could have played, just like all of our players, he would have played. There’s no question in my mind about that. He would have played as soon as he was ready to play. Hopefully it would have been the next week; I don’t know, but never doubt that about Lamar Jackson. He’s going to be out there, he’s going to be competing, he’s going to be giving everything he’s got in every situation.”
