Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has been known to give back to the community since his days with the Louisville Cardinals. Most would agree that the heartbeat of any community is the youth that resides in it.
Over the weekend, for the third straight year, Jackson hosted his annual event dubbed “Fun Day with LJ.”
In a video from the event that went viral, Jackson was spotted doing football drills on a basketball court with kids.
One would think this would have been a heartfelt moment that led to numerous positive headlines. But this is Lamar Jackson we’re talking about — criticism follows him wherever he goes.
Nothing but GREAT VIBES with Lamar Jackson yesterday 😎 @Lj_era8 pic.twitter.com/oXVET6dhzU
— Overtime (@overtime) July 12, 2021
Lamar Jackson was under fire from certain members of the media.
The video sparked an outcry from certain media members. Former Baltimore Ravens tight end and co-host of Undisputed Shannon Sharpe did not agree with how Jackson went about the event.
"“Lamar, you are a professional athlete. You don’t have anything to prove. Just sit back, get this money and when it’s all said and done, if you want to go out there and have a camp and challenge these young guys — have at it. But don’t mess your money up being dumb.”"
Lamar Jackson fired back following said criticism.
In response to all the criticism, Jackson took to Twitter on Wednesday. He let the community know that he enjoys mentoring the kids in the community and does not plan to stop anytime soon.
https://twitter.com/Lj_era8/status/1415342777760616448
Jackson is not the only one who believes what he is doing is right. Teammates, former teammates, and members from inside the Ravens organization have also come to the defense of the former NFL MVP.
Earlier this year, the Ravens exercised Jackson’s fifth-year contract option while the two sides wait to reach a long-term deal for the dual-threat quarterback.
While no one wants to see Jackson suffer an injury, it’s apparent that he is more concerned with giving back to his peers — and that is OK.
Lamar Jackson’s outreach in the community certainly won’t hurt negotiations. If anything, it just shows why Baltimore is lucky to have him.