Peyton Manning discusses Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson again failing to reach Super Bowl

Both Buffalo Bills star quarterback Josh Allen and Baltimore Ravens signal-caller Lamar Jackson previously vented about again coming up short in their pursuits of a trip to a Super Bowl as Patrick Mahomes guided the Kansas City Chiefs to a fifth Super Bowl appearance in six years. 

Hall of Famer Peyton Manning knows a little something about what Allen and Jackson have thus far experienced as pros. During the latest edition of "The Adam Schefter Podcast," Manning touched upon how the quarterbacks can shake off their latest postseason setbacks. 

"They’re owning it," Manning said about Allen and Jackson, as shared by Kristen Wong of Sports Illustrated. "They’re not shying away from it ... It’s not like Lamar and Josh are losing to bad teams by the way. They seem to be losing to the team that goes on to win the Super Bowl. So, not that that softens the blow, but you can go sit in the corner and sulk all offseason or you can go keep working hard and try to take it one step further the next year." 

The Indianapolis Colts made Manning the first pick of the 1998 NFL Draft, and he endured numerous playoff heartbreaks as the New England Patriots became a dynasty before he guided the Colts to their Super Bowl XLI win over the Chicago Bears in February 2007. Just as Tom Brady repeatedly kept Manning from getting his hands on the Vince Lombardi Trophy in the early 2000s, Mahomes has largely been an unstoppable force in postseason tournaments since January 2020. 

Jackson fell to 3-5 as a playoff starter via Baltimore's divisional-round loss at the Bills last month, and Allen has now gone 0-4 against Mahomes and Co. in the postseason since January 2021. While neither Jackson nor Allen has ever played on the final Sunday of a season, Mahomes will enter the upcoming Super Bowl LIX matchup versus the Philadelphia Eagles as a three-time champion and three-time title-game Most Valuable Player. 

"I left Josh a message the other day," Manning said about reaching out to Allen following Buffalo's loss to Kansas City in the AFC Championship Game. "I just told Josh how much I enjoy watching him play and how he competed his butt off against the Chiefs." 

Such kind words likely won't mean all that much to either Allen or Jackson as the two once again watch a different quarterback celebrate winning a Super Bowl championship in front of a worldwide audience.