Although the Buffalo Bills are playing at home in their upcoming divisional round playoff matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, Bills great Thurman Thomas says Lamar Jackson is under more pressure to win than Josh Allen.
Both Allen and Jackson are the two favorites to win the 2024 MVP award, with the Bills quarterback being a slight favorite over Jackson. However, both quarterbacks are looking to win a Super Bowl for the first time after years of coming up just short. While Allen may be the home quarterback, it’s the Ravens who are slight favorites despite being the No. 3 seed and playing on the road.
Both quarterbacks are under immense pressure to finally break through and win a Super Bowl, but the Bills legend says Jackson faces more pressure due to already having won two MVP awards along with having a better supporting cast.
“I would say it would be Lamar and only from the simple fact that a lot of the so-called experts were saying that the Bills would finish third our division behind the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins,” says Thomas in a one-on-one interview with ClutchPoints. “I don’t think a lot of pressure is on Josh Allen or the Buffalo Bills. I think more of the pressure is on Lamar Jackson because he won a playoff game last year. But he kind of struggled in the playoffs.”
Thomas continues to reiterate that Jackson has better weapons with arguably the best running back of this generation in Derrick Henry. The Ravens finished third in the league with 30.5 points per game, spearheaded by their league-leading rushing attack due to Henry and Jackson.
A bold prediction that Thomas makes is that Jackson will win his third MVP award, which is why he thinks the pressure is more on Jackson than Allen.
“I think he’s going to win his third MVP this year coming up,” says Thomas of Jackson. “Everybody wants to see him take that next step. They had an opportunity to do it last year, and Kansas City went in there and beat them in their home stadium. Now, Lamar has a lot more pressure on him, because if he does beat the Buffalo Bills, almost accordingly, he will play the Kansas City Chiefs in Kansas City, if they beat Houston. I think a lot of the pressure is on Lamar because he has weapons.”
Thomas makes a fair point. Jackson hasn’t exactly lit up the postseason, posting a mediocre 81.2 passer rating with eight touchdowns and six interceptions. By comparison, Jackson has a 102.0 passer rating in the regular season. It also doesn’t help that Jackson has gone just 3-4 and been to one conference championship game.
However, it’s worth also noting that Allen has only been to the conference championship game once with the Bills and has gone 0-3 against the Patrick Mahomes-led Kansas City Chiefs. But he does sport a 6-5 record and much better numbers than Jackson with a 102.3 career passer rating. That’s substantially better than his regular-season passer rating of 93.4.
Regardless of who is facing more pressure, it’s clear that both quarterbacks have been under scrutiny for their lack of postseason success and championship hardware. Both Jackson and Allen will be looking to change that narrative this Sunday.
Thurman Thomas on ‘It’s Crunch Time’ partnership
Thomas — a Pro Football Hall of Fame running back and the 1991 NFL MVP — is speaking on behalf of his partnership with Gridiron Greats Assistance Fund and the 16th Annual Pork Rind Appreciation Day. The five-time Pro Bowler is promoting the “It’s Crunch Time” sweepstakes which will see two fans win Super Bowl tickets and paid airfare/hotel to Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, California next year. Fans can enter now until Feb. 9.
“The fans can enter to win a grand prize, which is two tickets, airfare, and a hotel to the 2026 Super Bowl in Santa Clara, California,” Thomas explains. “You also get a year’s supply of pork grinds, so please don’t miss out. Visit porkgrinds.com and um, that’s why it’s called “Crunch Time.”
