Lamar Jackson can never escape those old, tired narratives that have followed him throughout his career. It seems no matter how many MVPs he’ll win, or how often he embarrasses opposing defenses, the Baltimore Ravens QB is held to unfair standards.
For one, Jackson has always been questioned about his commitment…for some reason. The whole OTA attendance thing was always overblown, and with his development over the years, any questions about his engagement should be put to bed. Apparently not.
In a recent segment on NFL Network, Ian Rapoport spoke about the budding relationship between Jackson and Declan Doyle. While commending Doyle, his comments seemed to include a bit of an unfair shot at Jackson.
“Lamar's super talented. It is also a challenge reaching him. Getting him engaged—it is something that [Todd] Monken did exceptionally well, but for a lot of coaches it can be an uphill battle. It certainly seems like Declan Doyle has climbed that mountain.”
This narrative has always been overblown, and the fact that people are still trying to run with it flat-out sucks.
Baltimore Ravens’ coaching change is no issue for Lamar Jackson
As Rapoport mentioned, Doyle has climbed that mountain. Now, I wouldn’t call it a mountain since Jackson has shown a willingness to work, but the point still stands. The connection between Jackson and Doyle is off to a fantastic start, and that shouldn’t be a surprise.
It can be challenging getting acquainted with a new coaching staff. However, Jackson has mentioned that he’s enjoyed learning Doyle’s system, even saying that he likes the challenge that the 30-year-old offensive coordinator is presenting on a day-to-day basis.
Clearly, there shouldn’t be any questions about Jackson’s mindset, and there never should’ve been. Ever.
Jackson was engaged when Greg Roman took over in 2019, he was engaged when Todd Monken took over in 2023, and now, big shocker, he’s engaged with Doyle taking over in 2026. The fact that people are even labeling him as difficult to work with is utterly ridiculous.
Before Doyle, the two occasions when Jackson had to work with a newly hired offensive coordinator (those 2019 and 2023 seasons), he won an MVP. Throughout his career, he has totaled 29,130 all-purpose yards and 222 touchdowns in regular season action. If that’s the kind of player that’s somehow tough to engage with, then I cannot fathom the numbers that he’d put up if he were fully bought in.
It’s also very obvious that Jackson has become one of the top voices in the locker room to turn to, especially over the last few seasons. He has no problem speaking up when things go awry, and it’s hard to miss his passion on the field and on the sidelines during games. You don’t have those leadership traits if you’re constantly being questioned about your dedication to the game.
I get that there have been reports over the years about Jackson being tough to reach, but at some point we just have to give it up. Comments like these should’ve been dropped when he made major strides as a passer, and if that wasn’t enough, his development as a leader should’ve shut it down. There’s really no questioning that Jackson is an elite player on and off the field.
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