The new NFL season is just several weeks away, and that means certain teams and quarterbacks will be under pressure to scale great heights or simply get out of a rut.
They say pressure is a privilege, but it all depends on how one responds to that pressure.
ESPN analyst Freddie Coleman gave his top-five list of NFL quarterbacks who are under the most pressure, and he put the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson at the top of his list.
Freddie thinks Lamar Jackson will have the MOST pressure on him this season. https://t.co/TqKk2qieHx pic.twitter.com/C9yjNzRjBv
— Freddie and Harry (@FreddieandHD) July 29, 2024
In his six seasons in the league, Jackson has won two league MVP awards, and at his best, he is clearly an electrifying dual-threat signal-caller.
But the knock on him is that at least thus far, he has been unable to win big games.
Last season, he led the Ravens to an NFL-best 14-3 record, but in the AFC Championship Game, their offense went flat, and he completed just 20 of 37 passes in a 17-10 loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs.
Coming in second on Coleman’s list is Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys, and one has to conclude it isn’t only because of his repeated playoff failures but also because he’s due for a big contract extension.
If Prescott doesn’t get an extension soon, he will become a free agent next offseason, which means he could be on his way out of Dallas.
Aaron Rodgers is third on Coleman’s list, and he’s under great pressure because of the torn Achilles that ended his 2023 campaign in Week 1, as well as the simple fact that he has become so polarizing.
Jordan Love, his successor on the Green Bay Packers, is at No. 4, while Brock Purdy, the San Francisco 49ers’ Cinderella QB, is at No. 5.
Both Love and Purdy are expected to take their respective teams very far in this season’s playoffs and possibly have them in a position to compete for the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Now that’s the type of pressure that is truly a privilege.