The Ravens quarterback is playing like an MVP in the final year of his contract while making a bet on himself that hinges on more than just his talent.
Lamar Jackson, the quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens, is doing two things that I respect. Three more, please.
One is that he is playing himself to death. In addition, the 25-year-old quarterback is representing himself in contract negotiations with the Baltimore Ravens.
The most exciting player in the NFL, in my opinion, is Jackson. After he and the Ravens failed to reach an agreement on a new contract last month, he stopped contract extension talks as he had previously pledged. Jackson promised the Ravens that he would play the remainder of the season, let his play to speak for itself, and then resume talks once the season is over. Jackson allegedly wants a deal similar to the $242 million fully guaranteed deal given to Deshaun Watson by the Cleveland Browns.
Each side is firmly entrenched: the Ravens on fiscal responsibility and avoiding setting a precedent, and Jackson on his demand that the team acknowledge his generational talents and compensate him accordingly. Jackson presents a convincing case each week. He serves as a reminder to the Ravens of his value to both the team and the league.
On Sunday, with fewer than two minutes remaining and Baltimore trailing Cincinnati by a point, Jackson guided the Ravens on a seven-play, 50-yard drive that set up a game-winning field goal. Jackson rushed for 30 yards on four occasions throughout that drive. Five yards, 19 yards, four yards, then three yards of each run were made with the intention of setting up place-kicker Justin Tucker’s 43-yard field goal, which helped Baltimore defeat Cincinnati 19-17 and take the lead in the AFC North.
However, this isn’t about Xs and Os and play-by-play. It centers on a young Black man who is aware of his importance.
Each performance Lamar Jackson puts on over the course of the next 12 weeks is a small piece of a much bigger game he’s playing and a smaller bet. Jackson is placing his own bet.
Jackson is a rather uncommon bird in the NFL due to his choice to represent himself. Laremy Tunsil of the Houston Texans, DeAndre Hopkins of the Arizona Cardinals, and Bobby Wagner of the Los Angeles Rams are a few NFL players who speak for themselves. Former players like Russell Okung and Richard Sherman spoke for themselves. Jackson is the only starting quarterback in the NFL to make this move, and he’s doing something no quarterback has ever done: Playing with all of his heart while personally negotiating a higher contract with the general manager.
When questioned about how Jackson used his special rushing abilities to advance the team into field goal range following Sunday’s game, Ravens coach John Harbaugh gushed.
Nobody is like him, according to Harbaugh. He belongs to the elite group of quarterbacks in this league; you can’t take anything away from them. I’ll prefer him to everyone. We own him. The Ravens’ quarterback, he. Both our team and our players adore him. Everyone adores him
Does the company believe in Jackson enough to provide him the desired guaranteed contract?
Even though the Ravens are one of the best-run NFL teams, this is one of the league’s wackier circumstances.
Steve Bisciotti, owner of the Ravens, admitted to having problems with the Watson contract to reporters at the NFL owners conference in March. His message was that the Ravens wouldn’t make the same mistake they did in Cleveland.
Regarding Watson, Bisciotti remarked, “I don’t know that he should’ve been the first man to have a completely guaranteed contract.” “In my opinion, that is a novel idea that will complicate negotiations with other parties. However, that does not obligate us to participate in the game.
Jackson and the Ravens are engaged in an intriguing game inside a game that, in a weird manner, pits the team against its star player.
Jackson wants to justify his demand for the billion-dollar guaranteed deal. The Ravens’ situation is uncertain; the team is taking a cautious approach.
Of course, the group wants Jackson to guide Baltimore to victory. The Ravens are essentially telling their franchise player they don’t think he’s worth it by refusing to offer him the enormous contract he wants. The organization has put itself in the position of betting against Jackson because Jackson is placing a wager on himself. The Ravens are making a wager that Jackson will perform poorly in the postseason or, even worse, get hurt, like he did last year, validating their apparent claim that, due to his forceful, complex playing style, Jackson is a poor long-term risk.
Jackson can only make a significant profit if he takes the Ravens all the way into the playoffs, ideally to the Super Bowl or at the very least to the title game. This entails competing in the Super Bowl against Josh Allen of Buffalo, Patrick Mahomes of Kansas City, Joe Burrow of Cincinnati, and who knows who else.
Analysis-wise, it makes sense to contrast Jackson with the other young quarterbacks of his generation, including Mahomes, Allen, Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals, Watson, and Burrow.
But statistics or comparisons shouldn’t determine Jackson’s worth. Jackson is just as valuable to Baltimore as Allen, Mahomes, or Watson must be to Cleveland, or as Buffalo values Allen, Mahomes, or Watson.
He’s ours, as Harbaugh indicated on Sunday.
I discussed Jackson with renowned agency and lawyer Leigh Steinberg last week. I specifically wanted to know what he thought about Jackson negotiating without an agent and the deadlock in contract talks. Steinberg has represented more than 300 players over the course of his 41-year career as an agent, including eight times the first overall choice in the NFL Draft. He is Mahomes’ current agent.
Is an agent required? The agent “protects the player from any animosity or criticism of either their performance or anything else,” according to Steinberg. He related the tale of Steve Bartkowski, his first client and a quarterback. He questioned Bartowski as to whether or not he wanted to know all the general manager had to say about him. Bartkowski declared he was interested in every detail.
The organization claimed that Bartowski was selected first overall because the draft was weak, Steinberg informed his client. He wasn’t very mobile, they claimed, and the squad was concerned he may get wounded.
And when Steinberg told him that, he responded, “Screw ’em, get me traded,” he recalled. The point is that while they were probably not necessary for him to hear, they were still a necessary component of the give-and-take.
What was stated between Jackson and the Ravens is unknown to me. The Ravens might be interested in knowing how long Jackson’s physique will last from a practical standpoint. Will he still be the explosive player he is currently in two years?
Jackson wants long-term security and a generational guarantee because he is also considering the big picture.
Steinberg praised Jackson, saying, “I think he’s already proven himself worthy of the level of a franchise quarterback.” “I suppose the question is: What does he still need to demonstrate? He’s already been MVP, after all. Thus, winning the Super Bowl would likely be the only greater accomplishment.
Jackson’s decision to wager on himself in a team sport is problematic since there are many factors that can go wrong, such as a lineman failing to block, a wide receiver making a bad decision or dropping the ball, or a running back fumbling.
The issue, according to Steinberg, is that no one player has influence over that. “It takes a team. And he’s not even playing chess or croquet. Every play is a traffic collision, and despite his incredible escapability and stealth, a player could get hurt at any time.
What was stated between Jackson and the Ravens is unknown to me. The Ravens might be interested in knowing how long Jackson’s physique will last from a practical standpoint. Will he still be the explosive player he is currently in two years?
Jackson wants long-term security and a generational guarantee because he is also considering the big picture.
Steinberg praised Jackson, saying, “I think he’s already proven himself worthy of the level of a franchise quarterback.” “I suppose the question is: What does he still need to demonstrate? He’s already been MVP, after all. Thus, winning the Super Bowl would likely be the only greater accomplishment.
Jackson’s decision to wager on himself in a team sport is problematic since there are many factors that can go wrong, such as a lineman failing to block, a wide receiver making a bad decision or dropping the ball, or a running back fumbling.
The issue, according to Steinberg, is that no one player has influence over that. “It takes a team. And he’s not even playing chess or croquet. Every play is a traffic collision, and despite his incredible escapability and stealth, a player could get hurt at any time.
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