Deshaun Watson Contract 'Did Create Some Problems' For Ravens And Lamar Jackson
The Baltimore Ravens are in the middle of a pretty public and stale negotiation with quarterback Lamar Jackson for a new long-term contract.
Typically when players and teams initiate contract talks they both judge whatever the proper market value for that position is. Unfortunately for NFL teams, the Cleveland Browns recently reset the quarterback market with their ridiculous five-year, $230 million, fully guaranteed contract for Deshaun Watson.
And other owners are refusing to allow that deal to dictate future ones.
Former Ravens' general manager and current executive vice president Ozzie Newsome said that Watson's contract has been a hurdle to overcome for the team when dealing with Jackson.
Newsome appeared on the Bernie Kosar Show and indicated Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti views the Watson contract as a problem.
“Every club has to do what they have to do with contracts,” Newsome said. “I don’t worry about what other people do, but our owner did say that contract did create some problems. We have to figure out if that’s going to be the norm or is that an outlier. We don’t know.”
League owners clearly don't want Watson's deal to be the norm for current contracts, and the NFL Players Association has even accused the owners of collusion to prevent other contracts from matching that of Watson's.
It's been two weeks since the Ravens organization slapped the non-exclusive franchise tag on Jackson, and the two parties appear no closer to a long-term deal than they were a year ago.
Talks of collusion aside, Jackson's desire for a huge, guaranteed deal like Watson's is what's keeping other owners away, and it doesn't appear there's a $200-plus million market for a player even with the former league MVP's resume. ... For now.
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