Samuel L. Jackson Reveals Hilarious Reason He Roots for Ravens

In a recent interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Samuel L. Jackson revealed that while he is an Atlanta Falcons fan for life, he roots for the Baltimore Ravens.

"It's Monday Night Football tonight! Are you still an Atlanta Falcons fan?" Kimmel asked Jackson.

"They're not playing tonight!" Jackson said. "They played yesterday. Yeah I'm still a Falcon fan, I can't not be a Falcon fan, but I cheer most for the Baltimore Ravens because Lamar Jackson is my bastard son."

"That's news!" Kimmel said. To which Jackson replied, "That's what everybody thinks!"

"Of course there's all kinds of side-by-side pictures of us online," Jackson said, when asked whether people really think the two are related. "When he was at Louisville, he used to sit next to [Traveon] Samuel, so it would be 'Samuel' 'L. Jackson' on the back of the jerseys when they were on the bench. It was great! Great for me."

Jackson is obviously best known for his film roles, but surprised football fans earlier this year with a supporting role in Kendrick Lamar's halftime show during Super Bowl LIX, a showdown that featured neither of his favorite teams.

A popular post on the subject of their fictional familial relationship got 10,000 likes on X (Twitter), with a photo of Samuel L. Jackson in his younger years next to a more current photo of Lamar Jackson. The caption read, "Samuel L Jackson & Lamar Jackson. I can’t unsee it."

Samuel L Jackson & Lamar Jackson. I can’t unsee it. pic.twitter.com/4ouyVKRkAd
— Hoops (@Hoopss) September 23, 2025

Jackson's Return From Injury

Jackson the quarterback recently missed time due to a Grade 1 hamstring injury he suffered in Week 4 against the Kansas City Chiefs, an injury that set the team back considerably given Jackson's talents. This season, Jackson has 1,442 passing yards on 172 attempts with a 68% completion percentage and 15 touchdowns. The Ravens recently took down the Cleveland Browns 23-16 with Jackson back on the field, and their playoff chances are looking better.

Now 5-5 and second only to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North, the Ravens have consistently climbed back from their alarming 1-5 record less than one month ago. With bold predictions in the air, like NFL analyst Emory Hunt saying, "the Ravens are not losing another game", Jackson's return has kickstarted hope in Baltimore fans everywhere.

According to their 2025-2026 NFL Playoff Simulator, The Athletic projects that the Ravens have an 80% chance to come out of this season as division champs with the No. 2, 3 or 4 seed, and an 18% chance of not making the playoffs at all. The other 2% accounts for the <1% possibility they become the division champs or get the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft. They're making up for lost time, but they're doing so beautifully. They face off against the New York Jets in Week 12, slated for 1:00 pm EST.

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