Lamar Jackson is a two-time NFL MVP. Dak Prescott matches Jackson as a three-time Pro Bowler. During the past five-plus seasons, their credentials and production stack up to the best quarterbacks in the league. Some would classify them as elite based on their contracts and accolades.
But until Jackson wins a Super Bowl for the Ravens and Prescott can end the Cowboys' long drought of not lifting the Lombardi Trophy, both will continue to hear their share of criticism.
Jackson has a 2-4 record in the playoffs. Prescott is 2-5. Despite leading their respective teams to big win totals in the regular season, those marks — tied, in part, to their own disappointing postseason play — will linger as clouds over their heads.
Sunday's Week 3 game in Dallas will mark the first time Jackson has dueled head-to-head with Prescott, as the latter missed the Cowboys-Ravens meeting in the 2020 season. Jackson starred in that matchup as Baltimore rolled to a 34-17 home victory.
Which of these star QBs are under the most pressure to win a Super Bowl, stat, to stamp their stats and accomplishments? Here's going head-to-head in a different way.
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Why Lamar Jackson needs to win a Super Bowl more than Dak Prescott does
Other than Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, and Aaron Rodgers, no other active NFL quarterback can claim having won multiple NFL MVP awards. Before that trio, every QB who has won two or more MVPS in league history is enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Mahomes and Rodgers will be in Canton, and Jackson already has his strong case right there.
Jackson has a chance to take home more individual hardware in his future, as he won't turn 28 until next January. However, in his two MVP seasons of 2019 and 2023 in different offenses, the Ravens had the AFC No. 1 seed but failed to win the conference and advance to the Super Bowl. He is 1-1 in the wild-card round, 1-2 in the divisional, and lost to Mahomes in the Chiefs in the AFC championship game last season.
While Mahomes has won three rings and made a fourth Super Bowl, Jackson's AFC North rival Joe Burrow is the only other QB who can claim a conference crown over the past five seasons. Jackson hasn't been able to get through Mahomes, but neither has Josh Allen and a lot of other good AFC quarterbacks. Because of Mahomes' presence, there's some understanding as to why Jackson hasn't broken through, as the Chiefs have often had the better overall team.
Jackson is feeling the pressure, given his once again reigning MVP status, to come through for a top playoff team, well coached by John Harbaugh. But is it greater than what Prescott feels in Dallas?
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Why Dak Prescott needs to win a Super Bowl more than Lamar Jackson does
The Cowboys have had many things go wrong in their five playoff trips with Prescott. The offense has let down with Prescott turning over the ball too much, but the defense and special teams also have had costly lapses. Unlike Jackson, Prescott has been the top seed in the playoffs only once.
When the Cowboys went 13-3 and took the NFC East in Prescott's rookie season, they were upset by Aaron Rodgers and the Packers at home in the divisional playoffs. Since then, they have lost twice more in the divisional round and twice in the wild-card round, including to Jordan Love and the Packers at home last season.
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In 2018, Dallas had little expectation to make a Super Bowl run, but from 2021-2023 when the Cowboys have gone a consistent 12-5 with a healthy Prescott under coach Mike McCarthy, they have failed to make a deep run to at least get to the Super Bowl.
The Cowboys seem further than ever from a title despite their strong winning profile. The cycle is difficult to break and requires a breakthrough from a red-hot Prescott carrying the team.
Dallas has been waiting since 1995, or three decades, to find someone who can return America's Team to The Biggest American Football Game. Prescott has looked like that guy at times, including last season in a pass-happy offense in which he played his career best at age 30. Now he's 31, and the clock is ticking toward diminishing returns.
The Cowboys haven't been able to put everything together in the playoffs under either McCarthy or predecessor Jason Garrett. There are numerous other reasons to point to them falling flat, but the fingers will keep pointing most at Prescott. Every year in Dallas features some of the most unreasonable expectations, and no Super Bowl will mean Prescott keeps falling short of meeting them.
Jackson is beloved in Baltimore, and everything points to the Ravens winning a Super Bowl with him in a year when Mahomes has a rare stumble. Prescott is often maligned by fans in Dallas and beyond, even when he's playing at a high level.
There's a reason "pressure" and "Prescott" begin with the same four letters. It's a lot more on him than Jackson to keep proving himself, and a ring is the thing that changes it all.
