The Baltimore Ravens, now 7-3 and winners of seven of their last eight, have the MVP frontrunner commanding their offense.
While it’s important to focus on the future and what’s ahead, sometimes it’s important to go back in time and call out nonsense when you see it, especially when it comes to hating on Lamar Jackson. All Jackson has done this season is prove he’s a true quarterback, and reducing him to just a “dual-threat” is lazy and wrong.
That’s why, we took it upon ourselves to revisit one of the worst takes of the season by ESPN’s own Ryan Clark.
What’s Ryan Clark saying now, and has he apologized?
One month ago, ESPN football analyst and former Pittsburgh Steeler Ryan Clark said ON NATIONAL TELEVISION that Washington Commanders rookie QB Jayden Daniels was a better passer than Lamar Jackson.
We were appalled by the notion. It was a ludicrous statement and one that’s aged terribly for Mr. Clark. He attempted to throw praise on Jackson, but a backhanded compliment is a backhanded compliment. You can listen to the exchange below:
Absolutely unreal stuff from Ryan Clark here
“Right now, today, through five games, Jayden Daniels is a better passer than Lamar Jackson” pic.twitter.com/QgtKeIpdHx
— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) October 11, 2024
Well, fast forward a month, and Clark’s Jackson/Daniels take couldn’t be more off the mark. The serial Ravens hater had his moment, but Jackson has since crushed the idea that anyone, least of all Jayden Daniels, is throwing the ball as well as he is right now.
Take a look at the breakdown below and compare their passing numbers head-to-head. In which statistical category does Daniels actually have an edge over Jackson?
|
Lamar Jackson |
Passing stats |
Jayden Daniels |
|---|---|---|
|
123.2 |
Passer rating |
101.8 |
|
2,669 |
Yards |
2,147 |
|
24 |
Touchdowns |
9 |
|
2 |
Interceptions |
2 |
|
69.1% |
Completion percentage |
68.7% |
|
9.3 |
Yards per attempt |
8.2 |
As we mentioned in our previous article, it felt like Clark was jumping the gun. Sure, Daniels was impressive through five games, completing over 77% of his passes. But that pace was never sustainable, as his current 68.7% completion rate now shows.
It seemed like he was clinging to that impressive completion percentage alone, especially since Jackson was already outpacing him in every other statistical category. Now, Jackson has even surpassed him in accuracy.
This revisit comes at the heels of Steelers’ head coach Mike Tomlin’s comments about the two quarterbacks when asked about the two QBs’ similarities and differences. Tomlin said, “Be real slow comparing people to Lamar Jackson,” Tomlin said. “That’s a multi-time MVP. That’s Mr. Jackson.”
Whether Tomlin is playing mind games (a move he’s known for) or simply speaking his mind, he’s a sharp coach who understands that Jackson is the more talented player and shouldn’t be dragged down by ridiculous takes like Clark’s.