What Is Next for Lamar Jackson After Turning Down a Contract Extension Rumored to Be In Excess of $200 Million?

Ever since he joined the NFL, Lamar Jackson has only known one team as home. Jackson was a first-round pick in the 2018 draft where the Baltimore Ravens picked him to join their squad. Ever since he joined the Ravens, Jackson has improved from strength to strength and is without a doubt one of the best quarterbacks in the league at the moment. However, it appears as though the Boynton College alumni is looking for a move elsewhere. 

In a statement released earlier today, Ravens General Manager Eric DeCosta said, “Despite best efforts on both sides, we were unable to reach a contract extension with Lamar Jackson. We greatly appreciate how he has handled this process and we are excited about our team with Lamar leading the way. We will continue to work towards a long-term contract after the season, but for now, we are looking forward to a successful 2022 campaign.”

This means that Jackson is playing through the last year of his contract and is set to earn $23 million and risks being franchise-tagged next season. However, the front office in Baltimore believes they can get a deal done before the deadline date, which is March 7th, 2023. 

What is next for Lamar Jackson?

It is very clear that the Baltimore Ravens want Jackson to stay with them and build a future together. The Ravens’ focus is winning the AFC North and becoming the NFL’s latest team to go from last place to first something that has happened in 17 of the last 19 seasons. If the two parties can not agree on a deal by March 7th, the franchise will use its franchise tag for the first time in the franchise’s 27-year history to keep Jackson from becoming an unrestricted free agent.

A quarterback getting a franchise tag has happened only twice in the last 10 years with Kirk Cousins and Dak Prescott. If the Ravens are unable to reach an agreement with Jackson by March, they know they have contractual control over Jackson for the next two seasons with the tag. However, this is not a situation neither Jackson nor the Ravens want to find themselves in. Given Jackson’s age and potential, there is a lot of upside in trading him in the off-season. 

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