Star Black quarterbacks no longer are the exception – they’re the rule. Throughout the football season, this series will explore the prominence and impact of Black quarterbacks from the grassroots level to the NFL.
BALTIMORE – In one corner, so to speak, will be the greatest dual-threat quarterback in NFL history, a record-holding, two-time MVP.
In the other, a fresh-faced challenger who’s the talk of the league will eagerly await his first crack at the champ.
Make no mistake, as much as the Washington Commanders-Baltimore Ravens matchup Sunday will be one of two division leaders, it will also be a heavyweight fight between Ravens superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson and Commanders rookie sensation Jayden Daniels. And although the quarterbacks won’t square off directly at M&T Bank Stadium, they’ll slug it out figuratively while leading their teams.
Daniels has impressed the man whose belt he aspires to take.
“I’ve been catching glimpses [of Daniels] … on social media and stuff like that,” Jackson told reporters in Baltimore on Wednesday. “He’s going off.”
Jackson is, too.
Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo
Typically dazzling as a runner and a passer this season, Jackson has been in top form during the Ravens’ three-game winning streak.
While leading Baltimore (3-2) to a first-place tie with the Pittsburgh Steelers atop the AFC North, the three-time Pro Bowler has completed 68% of his passes for 686 passing yards with seven touchdowns and no interceptions. As a runner over that stretch, Jackson has produced 196 rushing yards (with a 6.13-yards-per-carry average) and two touchdowns. Overall, Jackson has 363 rushing yards (6.8 yards per carry) and is eighth in the league.
In the NFL’s season opener, the visiting Ravens lost to the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. Then in a stunner in Baltimore’s second game, it flopped against the Las Vegas Raiders on its home field.
Since then, however, the Ravens have defeated the Dallas Cowboys on the road, the previously undefeated Buffalo Bills in Baltimore and the Cincinnati Bengals on the road. As the visiting Ravens outlasted the Bengals in overtime 41-38 in Week 5, Jackson outdueled Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, passing for 348 yards and four touchdowns and rushing for 55 yards.
After winning his second AP MVP award in 2023, Jackson, who holds the NFL single-season rushing record for quarterbacks, is among the early favorites to earn this season’s hardware. As well he should be, renowned quarterback coach Quincy Avery said.
Having both Jackson and Daniels together in the same the ring will be a marquee bout, and Avery intends to tune in.
“In terms of the MVP race, in my opinion, Lamar Jackson is leading the charge,” Avery told Andscape. “He’s playing at an incredible level. He’s just able to do so much and add so much to that team.”
To this point, Daniels is doing wonders for the Commanders.
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The runaway leader for the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award, Daniels, 23, has reinvigorated long-dormant Washington (4-1), which has won four straight and is alone atop the NFC East. The No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 draft, Daniels been impressive as much because of his smarts as a passer as his breathtaking athleticism as a runner.
With a sparkling completion percentage of 77.1, Daniels leads the NFL. He’s also third in Total QBR and fifth in passer rating.
When bolting from the pocket, Daniels often confounds would-be tacklers. He regularly extends drives with a rare combination of speed and elusiveness for any player, let alone a passer. Daniels has four rushing touchdowns, which is tied for fifth in the league, and 300 yards (5.3 yards per carry) to rank 14th in the NFL.
After watching Daniels throughout his college career, Avery was convinced that the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner would be one of the league’s best rookies this season, but “he’s playing as well as anybody I’ve ever seen in his rookie season, including [Houston Texans quarterback] C.J. Stroud with all the things he did last year,” Avery said. “He’s not only a great athlete, but he has become a really great quarterback.”
Ravens coach John Harbaugh is with Avery.
“Jayden is playing at a high, high level,” Harbaugh said. “He has his team. They built it around him.”
Daniels has been so sensational that he has rekindled something extinguished in many Commanders fans over the past generation: hope.
“When you look at the Washington Commanders, you don’t think about them the same way you thought about them [in the past],” Avery said. “They look like a well-run organization.”
That’s the positive vibe a franchise quarterback inspires. What’s more, it’s growing stronger daily because, according to many Washington team alumni, Daniels is great both on and off the field.
Washington franchise legend Doug Williams is leading that group.
Williams’ iconic, myth-busting Super Bowl performance occurred when he led Washington to a 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII. Williams, who became the first Black passer to start in the Super Bowl and win the game’s MVP award, said Daniels is even better than advertised.
“Let me tell you something, he is a really good person, and guys see that,” Williams, a Commanders senior adviser, told Andscape. “The way he is, the way you can tell he cares about his teammates and everyone around him, you can’t fake that.
“Now, don’t get me wrong. He’s a good person, but he’s also a fighter. Guys see that he’s gonna go out and give everything he’s got. Even after only [five games], it’s clear he’s not gonna back away from a fight.”
Once again on Sunday, count on Daniels to come out swinging. Jackson has proven he isn’t one to back down, either. The wait is almost over.
Let’s get ready to rumble.