Patriots' Lamar Jackson Mistake Was Ravens' Fortune

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is one of the very best players in the NFL today, so it's almost unbelievable in hindsight how many teams passed on him.

Jackson was the final pick of the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft, with the Ravens selecting him at No. 32 overall after trading up with the Philadelphia Eagles. That means 28 different teams (accounting for trades) passed on him, including the Ravens as they previously selected tight end Hayden Hurst at No. 25 overall.

Most of those teams now probably feel some level of regret for passing on Jackson, but some definitely feel it more than others.

In his upcoming book, "The Art of Winning," former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick listed passing on Jackson as one of his biggest mistakes in Foxboro.

"Where the book falls short is chapter 10, 'Mistakes,'" Ben Volin of the Boston Globe wrote. "Belichick does admit to a few — not drafting Lamar Jackson in 2018. ..."

The worst part is that the Patriots actually passed on Jackson twice that night. They selected offensive lineman Isaiah Wynn at No. 23 and running back Sony Michel at No. 31. Neither of them stayed in New England beyond their rookie contracts.

Of course, New England would've changed the course of NFL history if it had selected Jackson. He would have been the immediate successor to Tom Brady, who left the Patriots for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020, but could have left earlier and for a different team in this timeline. If the Patriots had developed Jackson properly, admittedly a big if as they struggled with player development in the final years of the Belichick era, their dynasty could still be going strong.

On the other side of the coin, the Ravens would be a drastically different team than they are now, and not in a good way. Without Jackson to take over for the injured Joe Flacco in 2018, they may have very well missed the playoffs for a fourth-straight year, and that could've led to John Harbaugh's firing. With a different head coach and quarterback then, the Ravens would be virtually unrecognizable today.

Now, though, it's all just a "what-if" scenario.