The Ravens’ playoff loss is not on Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson has now played in and lost two playoff games. What does that say about him as a player?

Not a damn thing.

His first playoff game a year ago was a poor performance from the then-rookie, but his second was defined by the mistakes that others made. The Ravens didn’t lose to the Titans because Jackson played below his usual standard— they lost because the entire team played below its usual standard, especially the defense and the guys dropping passes.

Jackson may be 0-2 in the postseason, but nothing about his performance against Tennessee indicated he was in over his head. Jackson carried or passed the ball on 83 plays against the Titans, the most touches for one player in a playoff game in NFL history. He did so because the Ravens knew that he was their best shot at making something positive happen.

While they still lost 28-12, the only thing Saturday taught us about the Ravens is that Jackson can’t always do it by himself. Even an offense led by Jackson can falter when everyone isn’t playing their best.

On the Ravens’ first possession of the game, they drove into Tennessee territory and promptly turned the ball over. Jackson was picked off when his pass went off the hands of tight end Mark Andrews:

The pass was a little high, but Jackson was unlucky that the tip led to an interception. He was at fault for a later interception and a fumble on a strip sack, however.

When the game was still close in the first half, his receivers continued to drop the ball. Wide receiver Seth Roberts had two drops on the day — one a surefire first down, and the other a potential touchdown:

Andrews, Willie Snead, and Hayden Hurst also had butterfingers. In total, the Ravens had six drops.

Then there was the running game, which was crippled by an injury to Mark Ingram. He only had six carries on the night, and was often seen on the sideline getting his calf examined by the training staff.

The Ravens’ defense, meanwhile, had no answer for Derrick Henry, who had 195 yards on the ground. He was a wrecking ball — just like he was against the Patriots in the Wild Card Round — and he also executed a trick play pass that extended Tennessee’s lead in the second half.

That defense allowed plays of 66 and 45 yards, and quarterback Ryan Tannehill also threw for a pair of touchdowns, including one in which the Baltimore secondary broke down:

The Titans never had to settle for a field goal, scoring all three times they moved into the red zone.

Jackson did struggle some on Saturday — he had three turnovers, which was uncharacteristic of someone who only had eight all season. But he struggled the same way players often do when their team gets hit in the mouth early. His struggles were human. He was trying to do everything when no one else could do anything.

Last year, the story of the Ravens’ playoff loss was about how they stuck with Jackson despite his middling stats at halftime. This year, it’s about how the Ravens, as a whole, screwed things up. Jackson finished Saturday’s game with 31 completions for 365 yards and a touchdown, and another 143 yards on the ground. That’s 508 yards of offense from one man, and the first time any player has totaled 300 passing yards and 100 rushing yards in a single postseason game.

The notion that Jackson now has a reputation for choking in the playoffs has already been brushed off by the quarterback.

Jackson isn’t worried about his playoff record, nor should he be considering the company he’s in. Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, and Aaron Rodgers didn’t win their first playoff game until their sixth year in the league, as pointed out by Chris Long:

Even if there wasn’t already a lot of evidence of how Jackson’s teammates imploded on Saturday, there would be this: he’s in his second year in the NFL! He’s coming off an MVP-caliber season in which he was consistently the best player on every football field he stepped on, week in and week out.

Baltimore, like any good team, will take a long look at this game and what went wrong. Very little of what the Ravens find will be Jackson’s fault. If anyone wants to make a prediction about Jackson’s future, here’s a safe bet: The Ravens will be back in the playoffs soon, and Jackson will be the only person they want leading the charge.