A former 1,000-yard wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens suggested the team limited star quarterback Lamar Jackson’s “skillset.”
The Baltimore Ravens haven’t always treated Lamar Jackson like a franchise quarterback, according to a former 1,000-yard wide receiver who suggested the team limited Jackson’s skill-set during the early years of his career.
Veteran Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown played the best football of his career during three seasons with Jackson from 2019-21. Brown, currently a member of the Kansas City Chiefs, was around when the Ravens were a run-first team leaning on read-option concepts to take advantage of Jackson’s mobility and give him easier throws.
The scheme helped Jackson be named NFL MVP for the first time, but Brown didn’t like his QB1 being put into a schematic box. Or labelled as limited in any way.
Instead, Brown told Ravens Vault co-host Bobby Trosset, “He can play in any system, too. That’s another thing I fought hard for when I was there my first two years. People telling me, ‘Oh this system was built for him.’ I hated hearing that. Because he is the system. He can play in any system. That was foolish to hear.”
When pressed for further information by Trosset, Brown answered emphatically, “It was just people saying that to me. In the building, out the building. I just didn’t like hearing that. I’m like ‘what you mean, this is the system you built around his skillset?’ He has an unlimited skillset. Like, okay, if you feel like he not good at something, let’s work on it. Let’s practice. That’s what we got all these OTAs, all this for, is to practice and get him better. Alright, let’s develop him a new skillset, if that’s how ya’ll feel, let’s develop it. That was a thing I didn’t like, but I’m happy they’re getting behind him and they’re going in a new direction.”
Marquise “Hollywood” Brown was really good today on Lamar Jackson:
“He can play in any system, too. That’s another thing I fought hard for when I was there my first two years. People telling me, ‘Oh this system was built for him.’ I hated hearing that. Because he is the… https://t.co/xrjYwHrfER pic.twitter.com/98xCQZ2xtI
— Bobby Trosset (@bobbybaltim0re) February 6, 2026
Those are damning words from one of Jackson’s favorite targets toward the system ran by former head coach John Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman. Brown wasn’t always happy with how the Ravens did things on offense, and he isn’t the only person connected with the team who refuses to put a limit on what Jackson can become.
Hollywood Brown Exit Hurt Lamar Jackson
Jackson was less than thrilled when the Ravens traded Brown to the Arizona Cardinals during the 2022 NFL draft. The deal eventually led to center Tyler Linderbaum, but Jackson and Brown had built a rapport, with the latter coming to No. 8’s defense when Jackson found himself criticized by another former Raven.
The criticism was familiar, along the lines of Jackson being more of a runner who happens to play quarterback. Not a true example of an elite passer and reader of defenses.
It’s an argument Jackson has had to fight against for years, but his progression as a passer hasn’t always been helped by how the Ravens have recruited wide receivers. Browns was a first-round pick in 2019, and the Ravens used subsequent first-round choices to select Rashod Bateman and Zay Flowers.
They haven’t been shy about investing top-tier draft capital at the position, but the Ravens have failed to land a truly elite, go-to wideout for Jackson. It’s held him back, despite the 29-year-old making progress throwing the football during the last three seasons when Todd Monken called the offense.
Monken’s predecessor Roman kept things tethered to the ground game, leaving Jackson somewhat restricted, while also frustrating Brown.
New Ravens Regime Keen to Expand Offense
Roman has reunited with Harbaugh for the New York Giants, but the ex-Ravens play-caller isn’t always fondly remembered in Baltimore. His run-first approach, while highly effective times, eventually became predictable, prompting questions about how far Jackson could develop as a more well-rounded QB.
A perceived inability or unwillingness by Roman to open up the playbook was a source of frustration. Brown admitted on “The Ryan Ripken Show,” that although “People think I hated Greg Roman, I didn’t hate Greg Roman. You know, I might not agree with some stuff, but he got a family, I go a family, the way he do things is his way. It might not be my way.”
“I got so much respect for the Ravens and Eric DeCosta. I didn’t really want to leave… It was more so… You know, I would like y’all to let me go somewhere else and ultimately it was up to them… I cried a lot”
Former Raven Marquise “Hollywood” Brown opens up about the
He didn’t want to leave, but Brown wanted more from one side of the offense. It’s something a new Ravens regime is hoping to put in place for Jackson in 2026.
Harbaugh’s replacement Jesse Minter choosing former Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle as his first OC was significant. An equally significant move was Minter letting go of Jackson’s longtime position coach.
Doyle earned credit by building his offense around the particular skills of second-year quarterback Caleb Williams, another unorthodox but gifted thrower. Jackson fits the same description, so he can expect to fit his skills into a more expansive scheme.
It will be a good test of Brown’s belief Jackson can dominate in any system.
James Dudko covers the New York Giants, Washington Commanders, New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens for Heavy.com. He has covered the NFL and world soccer since 2011, with bylines at FanSided, Prime Time Sports Talk and Bleacher Report before joining Heavy in 2021. More about James Dudko
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