Shannon Sharpe puts lofty expectations on Lamar Jackson after Jaire Alexander's $6,000,000 move to Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens made headlines this offseason when they signed free agent cornerback Jaire Alexander to a one year deal worth up to a maximum of $6 million. As a result, fans and analysts have been clear that the move only makes the Ravens a stronger team and may put even more pressure on QB Lamar Jackson to succeed and make it to the Super Bowl.

One of those analysts is Shannon Sharpe, who recently made clear on the 'Nightcap' show that the Ravens defensive unit is top tier with the addition of Alexander. The comments were made on the June 19 edition of the show.

"Defensively, you got Roquan Smith, who's one of the better middle linebackers. You got Marlon Humphrey, who's tremendous at the slot. Jaire, if he can stay healthy, that's been his issue the last several years in Green Bay. He couldn't stay healthy... We knew it was just gonna, eventually, it was gonna, it was gonna end with them [Jaire Alexander - Green Bay Packers relationship]."

Sharpe then continued by highlighting how there is now pressure on Jackson to succeed in 2025. He also noted how he wants to see Jackson perform in the playoffs like he has consistently done in the regular season.

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"But I like, I like this move [for Alexander]... Now Lamar is going to have to do it. I just need to be Lamar, to be Lamar in the postseason that we see in the regular season. That's it." (1:12:30) Sharpe said.

Lamar Jackson's career playoff record

Jackson has been one of the best players in all of football during the regular season. He is a two NFL MVP, a three time First Team All Pro, and a four time Pro Bowler.

However, he has struggled in the playoffs so far in his amazing career. Jackson has a postseason record of 3-5 and has only progressed further than the Divisional Round on one occasion. According to Stat Muse, during those games, Jackson is averaging 219.1 passing yards per contest. Although this is a solid value, Jackson only has ten passing touchdowns but seven interceptions during that span as well.

As a result, it is clear that Jackson has not been at his best in the postseason so far in his career, something that Sharpe believes needs to change for the Ravens to achieve any real playoff success moving forward.

Edited by Joshua Gillesby