Lamar Jackson’s path to the Super Bowl goes through the Kansas City Chiefs when the Baltimore Ravens host the defending champions in the AFC Championship Game.
Speaking of the upcoming challenge on Wednesday, the Ravens quarterback modified Ric Flair’s mantra about beating the man to be the man.
“To be a champion, you gotta go through a champion,” Jackson said. “That’s pretty much the mindset.”
“To be a champion, you gotta go through a champion.” @Lj_era8 pic.twitter.com/pWV0Zzze4K
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) January 24, 2024
Jackson compared Sunday’s showdown against Patrick Mahomes to “a heavyweight fight.” However, he’s not exactly eager to oppose the Kansas City star.
“I don’t like competing against him at all,” Jackson said before laughing. “He’s a great quarterback. Definitely a Hall of Famer.”
While Jackson has never played for the conference title, Mahomes is making his sixth straight AFC Championship Game appearance since taking over as Kansas City’s starter.
They have never met in the playoffs, but Jackson’s Ravens lost three straight times to Mahomes’ Chiefs from 2018 to 2020. Jackson got payback by running for 120 yards and a touchdown in a 36-35 victory over Kansas City in Week 2 of the 2021 campaign.
Kansas City remains the AFC’s standard-bearer with three AFC titles in the last four seasons. However, the Ravens boast home-field advantage after entering the regular season with the league’s best record (13-4) and point differential (+203).
Jackson is poised to join Mahomes as a two-time MVP after garnering 3,678 passing yards, 821 rushing yards, and 29 total touchdowns with a 102.7 passing rating. The 27-year-old completed 16 of 22 passes for 152 yards and two touchdowns while running for 100 yards and two scores in a 34-10 win over the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional Round.
The AFC Championship Game starts Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on CBS.