Roquan Smith hits back at Lamar Jackson critics after Ravens' AFC title game loss
Lamar Jackson has garnered much outside criticism since the Baltimore Ravens’ 17-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC title game. Jackson did not have his best game against the Chiefs. He led the Ravens offense to a mere two scoring drives on the day. He also threw one interception and posted a […]
Lamar Jackson has garnered much outside criticism since the Baltimore Ravens’ 17-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC title game.
Jackson did not have his best game against the Chiefs. He led the Ravens offense to a mere two scoring drives on the day. He also threw one interception and posted a 75.5 passer rating in the contest.
Roquan Smith does not want the majority of blame be directed at Jackson for Baltimore’s loss to Kansas City. After the game, Smith took some time to come to the defense of the sixth-year passer.
"I don’t really care about the opinions of [Lamar Jackson] nor the team at the end of the day," Smith said. "He is the leader of this team, leading the offense, he led the offense all year long. It's nothing dropping our head about.
"Like we didn’t get the job done at the end of the day, so that’s truly what it is. It’s not pointing fingers at the end of the day. We didn’t get the job done as a team. Defense, you have the mindset, don’t score, don’t win. Offense has the mindset, put points on the board, so that’s what it is. … It’s not a one man show by any means, it’s a team thing."
Jackson now holds a 2-4 record in his playoff career, and he has thrown six touchdown passes and six interceptions in such contests.
Lamar Jackson's impressive 2023 season
Jackson did have quite a sixth season with the Ravens. He helped lead Baltimore to its first AFC North title in four seasons, and he recorded 29 total touchdowns in regular season play.
Jackson is also well expected to win the 2023 AP NFL MVP award next month.
