With the 2026 football season right around the corner, Colin Cowherd released his latest list of the league's top ten quarterbacks. However, football fans immediately noticed that Baltimore Ravens star Lamar Jackson was completely left off the list. 

Cowherd placed Jackson eleventh, just behind the young Drake Maye. On his podcast, named The Herd, Colin Cowherd explained his controversial decision with this exact quote:

“I think he's very good, but it really came down to Drake Maye and Lamar,” Cowherd added. “And I think Drake's an ascending player. I think Lamar is an expensive, declining player.” 

Stating the reason for not including Jackson in his list, Cowherd said during an episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd that Jackson gets hurt too often and does not have many fourth-quarter comebacks.

Though Jackson stayed healthy through the 2023 and 2024 regular seasons, the Ravens quarterback missed four games in 2025 because of a hamstring injury and a back contusion. Before that, a sprained PCL sidelined him for the final six games of the 2022 regular season.

However, these criticisms do not seem fair as Joe Burrow is included in the list whilst missing 24 total games in his career.

Through his first eight NFL seasons, Lamar Jackson has accumulated 22,608 passing yards, 187 passing touchdowns, and 6,522 rushing yards, making him the most prolific rushing quarterback in NFL history. 

Additionally, Kevin Eck of the Baltimore Ravens argues that Jackson has 11 comeback victories in the fourth quarter, which is five more than Burrow. 

In light of this, former NFL players LeSean McCoy and Ryan Clark spoke out. They argue that Jackson is held to a completely different and unfair standard compared to other star quarterbacks like Joe Burrow and Josh Allen. 

Lamar Jackson might use the present ranking to repeat history

In 2022, a knee injury cut Lamar Jackson’s season short. The Baltimore Ravens quarterback missed the final six games, and his player ranking dropped.

But Jackson did not let that stop him. In 2023, he signed a massive new contract, changed his style of play, and threw for a (back then) career-high 3,678 yards to lead the Ravens to a 13-4 record.

His spectacular comeback earned him the league's top individual honor, which was the Most Valuable Player award.

“The Ravens quarterback was named 2023 NFL Most Valuable Player on Thursday at NFL Honors at Resorts World,” Nick Shook of NFL.com reported. “Marking the second time he's won the award after he took home the honor following the 2019 season.” 

In 2025, Jackson dealt with a tough hamstring injury that slowed him down. But if history repeats itself, this latest hurdle will only fuel him. 

Fans are excited to see him bounce back and deliver another unforgettable season.

Read more at Quarter Back Central!

Written by

Aaindri Thakuri

Edited by

Aadesh Dhote