Ravens to Franchise Tag QB Lamar Jackson in Case of Future Trade?
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Somewhere inside of all the reports on the Baltimore Ravens' contractual plan with Lamar Jackson there are some basic truths ... you just have to dig through lots of "word salad'' to get there.
The easy and obvious truth: Baltimore, short of signing its star QB outright, will use the "exclusive franchise tag'' on Jackson in order to retain his rights, guaranteeing him about $45 million for the 2023 season.
But beyond that? One spoonful of "news'' ... and the rest, "word salad.
Example of the latter?
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote on Friday (rather breathlessly and behind a paywall) that "executives around the NFL expect the Ravens to use the exclusive franchise tag on Jackson. This is presented as if it is some revelation, but in fact we don't need "anonymous NFL execs'' to tell us this.
The exclusive tag is standard operating procedure here.
Additionally, Fowler wrote that if the Ravens use the exclusive tag, he would expect a “standoff.”
And again ... of course there will be a "standoff.'' ... until there isn't.
Still ... standard operating procedure.
But is there a nutritious bite in all of this? We know that the Ravens could also use the non-exclusive franchise tag, which guarantees his salary for 2023 while also allowing him to negotiate with other teams - and then match their offer. ...
And if the Ravens decline to match, they get two first-round picks from the new team.
Again ... all understood.
But Ian Rapoport at NFL Network has put into words another reason to avoid the latter tag, saying that if Baltimore ends up trading Jackson, it can get more than the two picks.
It'd be more like three first-round picks, as we have already reported here. ... and therefore, the non-exclusive tag would represent the Ravens screwing themselves out of Lamar's true trade value.
As we plow through this offseason on this topic, we'll try to continue to help Ravens fans maneuver through the Lamar Jackson news ... and the "word salad'' silliness.
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