Ravens' Lamar Jackson Has Perfect Timing for Contract Leverage

It's extension season in the NFL. The months following the draft and the height of free agency are some of the driest of the offseason, and the Baltimore Ravens are stuck with the same unsolvable puzzle as every other franchise attempting to appease everyone looking for a fresh contract.

The team's inked big deals with their star rookies as well as some of the All-Pro-level talent already lining the roster, but they're still far from finished with signing all of their core pieces for the long-term.

Staples both old and new like Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely and Odafe Oweh have spun their awkward situations into news stories, but there are few potential extensions receiving as much buzz as whatever awaits Lamar Jackson.

The Ravens' ringleader and multiple-time MVP of a quarterback has led the winning franchise into a new era with his unparalleled run game and success as a winner, and has already had to feel like the lame duck once before when no one else wanted to resign him when his last deal expired.

With the cap hits awaiting the Ravens in 2026 and 2027 that Jackson's due to soak up, an extension is starting to look like a likely release valve for everyone involved, especially as his less-decorated peers get fresh deals while people in Jackson's corner advocate for his long-term security.

CBS analyst Joel Corry broke down how fortuitous this timing is for the agent-less Jackson as he looks to avoid the dilemma he faced in the early 2020s.

"Jackson is faring much better financially from a pure cash-flow perspective than by average yearly salary. Only Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who is the NFL's highest-paid player at $60 million per year, is making more than Jackson's $155.25 million from when he signed in 2023 running through the 2025 season. Prescott is making $165 million during this three-year span," Corry writes. "Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is third at $152.6 million. It was supposed to be $156 million for Jackson but he didn't earn his $750,000 workout bonus in 2024."

"Fortunately for Jackson," he continues, "Harbaugh conceded at the league meetings that Jackson was going to be put back at the top of the NFL salary hierarchy with his next contract. 'The value is the top,' Harbaugh said. 'When Lamar gets paid, he's going to be the highest-paid player in football, just like he was last time. I think every contract he signs till he decides to hang up his cleats, he's going to be that guy.'"

He's through his second year of the five-year, $260 million agreement he and the organization came to in 2023, and already has back-to-back All-Pro appearances to back up their trust. He now looks to join his fellow MVP candidates in guaranteeing a relatively proportionate salary into the 2030s.

Make sure you bookmark Baltimore Ravens On SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!