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Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens made light work of C. J. Stroud and the Houston Texans on Saturday, dominating at home and advancing to the AFC Championship with a 34-10 win. Although the game was tied at halftime, the Texans had no answer for Lamar in the second half.
Texans coach DeMeco Ryans had a simple assessment of what transpired in the second half with Lamar Jackson.
"That's why he's the MVP", said the rookie coach who took Houston from a three-win season to a division title and the playoffs.
Ryans wasn't the only one to praise Lamar after Saturday's victory, though. Even Maryland governor Wes Moore chimed in, asking the haters if they could finally admit that Jackson is a great quarterback:
How much is Lamar Jackson's new contract worth?
Lamar and the Baltimore Ravens agreed a contract extension, with the player signing a five-year, $260 million contract, with $185 million guaranteed.
He wanted his contract to be fully guaranteed, but teams in 2023 are unwilling to do so. Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti was critical of Deshaun Watson's contract, which was fully guaranteed at signing, due to what that may cause other teams to do.
Jackson, who does not have an agent, negotiated the contract himself with the franchise. Many NFL teams decide to lock up their star quarterbacks as soon as possible, but the Ravens waited longer than usual to extend Lamar.
They could've avoided a ton of headache and negativeness had they agreed a deal sooner. There should be no doubt about who's the league MVP in the 2023 season, though.
Rob Gronkowski said a few weeks ago that he would take Lamar Jackson over Joe Burrow, his AFC North foe who missed most of the 2023 season:
"Lamar Jackson is currently the better quarterback. He's throwing the ball better than he ever has, and while he is sitting in the pocket; when he's not in the pocket, he's running the ball for another 20 yards"
The Ravens take on the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game on January 28.
