Baltimore Ravens announce All-Time 25 team: 3 big things
The Baltimore Ravens announced the results of the fan voted All-Time 25 Ravens roster. Instead of just telling you the results, here are three things to think about:
1. Lamar Jackson gets nod over Joe Flacco:
It may be a little surprising that Lamar Jackson gets the one quarterback spot on the All-Time roster. Recency bias is surely on Jackson’s side, as is the fact that the Ravens offense has never been more fun than it was in 2019. It’s hard to say that Jackson getting the honor is wrong. He’s already achieved things that Flacco didn’t. Flacco never went to the NFL Pro Bowl. While he was a Super Bowl MVP, Flacco never had a regular season that compares to the MVP earning year that Jackson had. It may not be wrong to honor Jackson here, it just doesn’t quite feel right.
It’s hard to put Jackson as the quarterback. While I fully expect Jackson to top Flacco’s run with the Ravens, Flacco was the quarterback for over a decade. In Flacco’s first five years the Ravens made the playoffs and won at least one playoff game. The 2012 Super Bowl run was the most magical stretch a quarterback can have.
When Ray Lewis retired and Ed Reed went elsewhere, Flacco was the face of the franchise. It’s easy to forget that Flacco won more road playoff games than any quarterback in NFL history. It’s easy to forget how good he was because even at his best, he wasn’t as flashy as Jackson.
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This one comes down to a personal preference. In the end it just seems a little early to put Jackson as the best quarterback in Ravens history. The fact is though, he may be the most fun to watch player the Ravens have had at just about any position. Jackson so far is the opposite of Flacco. Flacco struggled in the regular season but was money in the postseason. Jackson has had trouble in the playoffs but is unfathomably good in the regular season. If Jackson wins a Super Bowl and has a long run of this kind of play, he’s going to eclipse Flacco. This saves everybody some time I guess.