Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson said he still has something to prove being a Black quarterback in the NFL.
Jackson addressed the issue during an appearance on LeBron James‘ YouTube interview show “The Shop,” which had its season premiere Friday.
When the discussion turned to how there has been a historical bias against Black quarterbacks, James said, “It’s dying off, but it’s still there.”
Jackson responded, “It’s still there. That’s why I need that championship.”
During the show, James talked about how he feels disrespected when not being included in discussions about the best scorers in NBA history. He said it’s something Jackson could relate to because of critics telling him “he wasn’t a real quarterback.”
During the discussion, it was brought up how Jackson was asked to run wide receiver drills at the NFL scouting combine four years ago after being a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback. Jackson shrugged when asked why this happened, saying, “I have no idea.”
In 2018, Jackson became the fourth Black quarterback to win NFL Most Valuable Player. He is 37-12 in the regular season and just 1-3 in the postseason.
Asked what lessons he hopes to take from James as he grows, Jackson said, “Everything. And being a champion. I feel like that’s the one thing I want to take from him, if anything else. You know, being a champion. Being a billionaire. That’s what I’ve been thinking about ever since I was a little kid, being a billionaire and being a champion.”