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Lamar Jackson is officially a two-time NFL MVP.
Jackson, who earned unanimous MVP honors in 2019, earned 49 of a possible 50 first-place votes this year. Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who finished fifth overall in voting, received the only other first-place ballot.
In a nod to the contract drama that preceded the season, Jackson used his acceptance speech to jokingly thank the Ravens for “finally getting the deal done.”
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He followed with sincere thanks for coach John Harbaugh, general manager Eric DeCosta, owner Steve Bisciotti and his teammates.
“My offense, my offensive line, I can’t thank them enough for what they’ve done,” he said. “I’m not out there blocking, catching the ball, doing everything. It’s my team, it’s a team thing for these awards.”
The All-Pro is the 11th player to win multiple MVP awards, and he is the second youngest to win the award a second time. Hall of Fame Cleveland running back Jim Brown won the award in his first two seasons in the league, the second coming for his age-22 season.
Jackson beat out four other players, including two who are playing in the Super Bowl, San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy and running back Christian McCaffrey, who was named Offensive Player of the Year. Jackson outshined Purdy in their Christmas night head-to-head when the Ravens beat the 49ers 33-19. He completed 23 of 35 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 45 yards. Purdy went 18-for-32 for 255 yards, no touchdowns and four interceptions.
Allen and Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott were the other finalists. Allen finished the season with a completion percentage of 66.5% and a passer rating of 92.2. Prescott finished with a completion percentage of 69.5% and a passer rating of 105.9.
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During an interview on NFL Network, Jackson said he was grateful to win the award.
“Just because I’m among the great players in the NFL, I’m going to always be honored, just because of that, because we’re going against the best of the best, each and every game,” he said. “Day in and day out, you’re trying to get better, and these guys are great, so for me to be honored with this award, man, I’m just grateful for it.”
After 16 regular-season games, Jackson finished with career highs in completion percentage (67.2%), passing yards (3,678) and yards per attempt (8.0). He had a passer rating of 102.7 and 29 total touchdowns, helping the Ravens achieve the best point differential against winning teams (plus-178) in NFL history.
Jackson improved his passing this season but continued to use his legs, finishing with 821 rushing yards, the most of any quarterback.
In the last six years, three quarterbacks have earned the award twice. In 2018, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes won it in his second year. Jackson won the following year, also his second NFL season. Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers won the next two years, followed by Mahomes again in 2022. Now, Jackson gets his second.
The Associated Press, which selects the winners, updated its voting system this year to have voters rank their top five players for MVP and their top three names for the other awards to help them determine second- and third-place finishers more smoothly. A group of 50 sports journalists who cover the league, former players and coaches vote on the awards.
The other awards are Defensive Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Rookie of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year, Comeback Player of the Year, Coach of the Year and Assistant Coach of the Year. The Associated Press has been voting for the MVP award since 1957.
The Ravens’ season ended with a disappointing 17-10 loss to Kansas City in the AFC championship, a game in which Jackson had two turnovers and the offense never got in sync.
On NFL Network, Jackson seemed confident the Ravens could get to the Super Bowl.
“Just lock in some more. Just do what we do, and we’ll be in it,” he said with a laugh.
Does he plan to watch the game Sunday?
“Too raw. Too raw. I’m good,” he said. “I don’t want to watch the game.”
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Giana Han is a Ravens beat reporter from Howard County.
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