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In a season that has been waiting for someone to take control of the MVP race, Lamar Jackson cemented himself as the favorite following the Baltimore Ravens’ 33-19 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Monday night.
Jackson’s head coach and teammates were happy to argue for his MVP candidacy after the game.
“I thought Lamar had an MVP performance,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “It takes a team to create a performance like that, but it takes a player to play at that level — to play at an MVP level—it takes a player to play that way. And Lamar was all over the field doing everything.”
Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers said Jackson “can do everything” on the football field, and it was on display against the 49ers:
“He ran it; he threw it; he led the team. That’s the MVP. You lead your team, you have the best record in the NFL, and he just comes out and continues to come out and do what he [does] game in and game out even though people [say], ‘He can’t do this. He can’t do that,’ and he comes out and proves them wrong every time.”
Linebacker Roquan Smith said anybody who has watched “football this season and watched the Baltimore Ravens” knows “for a fact [that] Lamar Jackson is the MVP, hands down.”
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Tell ’em, Ro❗️ pic.twitter.com/lXV6GtbduQ
The money line as the game was going on saw Jackson move into the top spot as the betting favorite for the award.
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🚨 NEW MVP ODDS MOVEMENT 🚨
Lamar Jackson is officially the favorite to win MVP after a dominant game against the 49ers. #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/b2bL4c976D
Despite the praise from other members of the Ravens, Jackson downplayed the MVP narrative because he’s been in this position before and the team came up short in the playoffs.
“We know it was in 2019 when we were playing against [teams] like this [and] winning regular season games [and] when the time came, we didn’t finish the season,” Jackson said. “We’re just going to keep taking it a day at a time, a practice at a time and a game at a time. That’s all I’m focused on right now.”
Jackson’s first full season as a starting quarterback was in 2019. He threw for 3,127 yards, ran for 1,206 yards and led the league with 36 touchdown passes to become the first Ravens player to be named NFL MVP.
The Ravens went 14-2 during the regular season, but lost their first playoff game to the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Divisional Round. They are 1-3 in four postseason games with Jackson starting at quarterback over the past five seasons.
Even though the two teams entered Monday with identical 11-3 records, the 49ers were favored by five points after winning six straight games by at least 12 points.
Jackson carved up San Francisco’s defense with 252 passing yards and two touchdowns through the air, plus another 45 yards on the ground. He has already set a career high with 3,357 passing yards and is completing a career-best 66.3 percent of his attempts this season.
The Ravens had five interceptions against Brock Purdy and Sam Darnold. They own the best record in the NFL at 12-3 and can clinch home-field advantage in the AFC playoffs with a victory over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.
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