New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick certainly seems to be a fan of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.

In the leadup to the 2018 NFL Draft, questions surrounded Jackson on whether or not he'd be strong enough of a passer in the pocket to succeed in the NFL. Ahead of the Patriots' Week 3 matchup with the Ravens, Belichick believes Jackson has done more than enough to prove he can throw in the pocket.

“Without a doubt [he's answered those concerns],” Belichick said Wednesday. “It’s the type of the player, the MVP type of candidate. I think he’s more than answered them. But, we’ll see what his contract is, that will answer them.”

If you've somehow missed it, Jackson has been in talks with the Ravens for a contract extension, seeking to receive the most guaranteed money in a deal in NFL history.

While it isn't known what kind of contract Belichick would give Jackson, he had the chance to draft Jackson in 2018–twice. The Patriots held the No. 23 and No. 31 picks in that draft. As Brady's time in New England appeared to be winding down, the Patriots actually invited Jackson to Foxborough for a pre-draft visit. Belichick had good things to say about Jackson's trip.

“Great visit,” Belichick said. “Spent a lot of time with him. Really interesting guy.”

Jackson shared his side of the story of his pre-draft trip to Foxborough on Wednesday, too.

“I see Belichick smiling – usually he's a straight-faced guy,” Jackson said. “When I seen him smiling, I'm like ‘Damn, you're a funny guy.' I told him that and ‘Damn, I wasn't expecting you to be smiling.'”

New England opted not to select Lamar Jackson with its two first-round picks that year. Instead, it selected offensive tackle Isaiah Wynn and running back Sony Michel with the No. 23 and No. 31 picks, respectively. Right after the Patriots selected Michel, the Ravens traded up to No. 32–the final pick of the first round–to select Jackson.

Sunday will be the third time that the Patriots will face Jackson in his five-year career. The first meeting certainly didn't leave Belichick smiling in 2019. Jackson completed 17 of 23 passes for 163 yards with a touchdown passes and added 61 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, leading the Ravens to a 37-20 win, which was the Patriots' first loss of that season.

The Patriots faced Jackson again in 2020, getting a better result that time around. Jackson completed 24 of 34 passes for 249 yards and two touchdown passes but threw an interception while adding 55 rushing yards on the ground.

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As they prepare to face Lamar Jackson for the first time in two seasons, Bill Belichick isn't expecting the same thing to happen.

“I think that game is going to be quite a bit different this time around, for a number of reasons,” Belichick said. “We’ll look at all our games against them. The '19 game down there, the '20 game, but they’ve had a lot of changes, we’ve had a lot of changes. I think the guys that will be out there on the field for us are quite different than what we had out there in '20.

“You’re looking at the same thing with the Ravens. They drafted 10 players this year in the first four rounds, so certainly a youth movement there. We’ll look at it. I don’t think it’ll have much bearing on the game.”

Jackson has gotten off to a strong start already in 2022. He's thrown for 531 yards and six touchdowns with an interception, and has 136 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown through the first two games as the Ravens are 1-1 in the NFL standings.