You heard it here first: Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson hates the City of Cleveland.
OK, I may be editorializing a bit too far there. What I can say is Lamar Jackson has absolutely terrorized the Browns throughout his eight-year career. Through 15 starts, he boasts a 10–5 record with 2,737 passing yards, 22 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, and an extra 770 yards and six TDs on the ground.
He's currently sitting on a three-game win streak against Cleveland after a clean sweep in 2025. Naturally, Browns fans have a great deal of respect for the superstar QB. It's hard enough to defend him when his diamond-covered teeth are beaming because he's jovial. When he gets angry, he turns things up a notch or eight. Then the nightmare fuel starts.
That's where the NFL's annual Top 100 Players list comes into play. After Jackson was named the No. 2 overall player in 2025, he took a nosedive to No. 69 in this year's edition. Surely, Lamarvelous will not be too happy about that.
Angry enough, in fact, that the snub may propel him into a season-long prove-it tour to stick it to all his peers who have clearly written him off prematurely.
The NFL may have given Lamar Jackson exactly the motivation he needed
Over at FanSided's The Ebony Bird, the reaction was what you'd expect. Connor Burke wrote, and the Browns wept:
"Whatever credibility the list had left was destroyed. Lamar Jackson’s placement has already been revealed, and he comes in at No. 69. That’s absolutely horrendous … I understand the injury card that some people will play. A variety of injuries definitely held him back in 2025. But Jackson still played in 13 games, accounted for 23 total touchdowns, and almost Superman’d a dreadful team into the playoffs in Week 18."
"Luckily, this might actually be a good omen for Jackson and the Ravens. Following that drop on the list a few seasons ago, Jackson went on to win his second MVP and the team made the AFC Championship Game. If history repeats itself, the 29-year-old and Baltimore could be due for a major bounce-back."
The NFL Top 100 list serves as little more than cannon fodder for a slow time in the offseason. Little slights here and there actually make it important, to the chagrin of rival fans. It's like those guys who enrage the bull but don't actually have to partake in the rodeo.
Lamar Jackson will first play the Browns in Week 6 at Baltimore before making his annual heartbreaker trip to Cleveland in Week 16, two days after Christmas. No, the Browns don't even face the Ravens at a time when Jackson may be held out due to a clinched playoff spot. Health permitting, they're getting the full L.J. experience.
As the great Mike Tomlin would say: "Be real slow comparing people to Lamar Jackson. That’s a multi-time MVP. That’s Mr. Jackson. We’ll see Mr. Jackson in a few days." For the Browns, it's a few months. After all, Todd Monken has said, colorfully, that he has a plan for his former pupil.
We'll see about that soon enough.
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