Lamar Jackson

Lamar Demeatrice Jackson Jr. (born January 7, 1997) is an American football quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisville Cardinals, where he won the Heisman Trophy during his sophomore year, and was selected by the Ravens as the final first round pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. Jackson became the Ravens' starting quarterback in his rookie season after an injury to incumbent Joe Flacco and clinched a division title with the team, also becoming the youngest NFL quarterback to start a playoff game at age 21. The next year, Jackson set the single-season record for quarterback rushing yards and led the league in touchdown passes, while helping the Ravens obtain their conference's top seed. For his success, he became the second unanimous Most Valuable Player (MVP) and the fourth African-American quarterback to win the award. Jackson followed up his MVP campaign by becoming the first quarterback to have multiple seasons with 1,000 rushing yards and led the Ravens to a third consecutive playoff appearance. In 2023, he signed a five-year contract worth $260 million, making him the highest paid player in the NFL at the time of the signing. Early years Jackson was born to Felicia Jones and Lamar Jackson Sr. on January 7, 1997. He grew up in the center of an economically distressed section of Pompano Beach, Florida. Jackson's father died from a heart attack on the same day his grandmother died in 2005, when Jackson was 8 years old. His siblings and he were raised by their mother. He attended public schools and played Pop Warner football in the same Florida league with future teammate Marquise Brown. When he was 8 years old, Jackson could throw a football 20 yards. In high school, Jackson threw a football 100 yards.