Three Things Holding Back A Lamar Jackson Contract Extension With The Ravens

The Ravens have roughly a month until training camp begins.

At which point, given how “cool” Lamar Jackson has said he is with his existing contract, the specter of the two-time MVP playing out one more lame duck year in Baltimore before going elsewhere would become the expected outcome within the industry. With a no-trade clause and a no-tag clause and an impossible $85M cap hit in 2027, that is the Ravens reality.

Already, this is another long, hot summer between the iconic QB and the only franchise he has ever played for before, with him literally appearing to break out in sweat when probed about the situation in May. Unlike any recent interaction between NFL team and elite QB in his prime, the Ravens allowed Jackson to dangle on the market on a non-exclusive franchise tag before finally securing his latest deal, with the quarterback also going public with a trade demand along the way. The last, best time to get an audience with him in offseason mode was the month-long stretch of Organized Team Activities and minicamp Jackson just participated in, while raving about rookie offensive coordinator Declan Doyle and the “explosive” attack being built.

Nothing has been smooth or easy about this latest go-round, same as last time, and by not prioritizing this last offseason the Ravens ceded even more leverage to the player, who represents himself, further mudding the process. We’ve discussed where things currently sit with agents and NFL execs – in the aftermath of Patrick Mahomes quickly and easily resetting the QB market again in Kansas City, and it’s clear that there are three issues holding this back

Guaranteed Money/Contract Length

We went in depth on this issue on “The Daily Flock Show” with former longtime head of salary cap and administration for the NFLPA, Mark Levin, who was quite involved in Jackson’s last negotiation but not this one. We’ve also chatted with Levin about this for years.

Obviously, money is always at the root of any negotiation and a failure to make any progress on a matter this fundamental to the very future of the franchise, after owner Steve Bisciotti said he wanted it done by March, is telling. I have gotten the sense from Levin that Jackson is far more concerned with full guarantee at the time of signing, and securing more than three-years fully guaranteed, than he about setting a new record for annual salary.

Jackson got particularly squirely when asked about texts that were made public during the NFLPA collusion case about him wanting a full guaranteed deal. Levin made it clear that he was privy to a proposal by the Ravens that was only fully guaranteed for three years that was rebuffed. And he was speaking to Jackson when he asked to leave town.

“He wanted to do what he could do strategically to try to force the Ravens’ hand,” Levin told me. “He was not a happy camper at the time … They were not treating the negotiation seriously enough to Lamar’s linking.”

Especially now, with him older and experiencing more injuries and this offensive line in steep decline last season, it would seem obvious that getting four-to-five years of massive QB money fully guaranteed starting in 2027 (like Mahomes’s new structure) is the wedge between them. Again, my talks with Levin have me convinced that $60M/year or $64M/year isn’t what Jackson is consumed with.

“Maybe they’re thinking, with him being banged up a little bit,” Levin said, making it clear he was just making an assumption here, “they don’t want to guarantee $250M to him … If I’m Lamar Jackson at this stage of my career I don’t really care what my APY (average per year) is. What’s my real guarantee?"

I don’t think Levin picked that number arbitrarily, and after Mahomes’s new deal it feels even more germane.

Suspect Bedside Manner

The Ravens had a hard time connecting with their quarterback off the field. It’s happening again. I believe Bisciotti intimating Jackson himself didn’t think he was worthy of that first real contract until he won a Super Bowl did him and his contract negotiators no favors, no matter how long ago it was.

It’s just not playing out in other NFL cities with franchise QBs this way. Maybe getting off a bad foot and that playing out for multiple offseason has kept them behind the curve getting future deals done. It’s fair to infer.

The onus is on them to get the player to sign exclusively with Baltimore, not the other way around. Any player of this stature who could hit the market would be more than willing to bet on himself; they have to keep him from reaching that status, and it’s more difficult now than ever before with the no-trade clause and no-tag provision.

They haven’t been able to connect with him on a basic level, and present incentivized packages in a manner that captivates his attention. It takes two to tango and if he don’t look like he wants to dance sometimes, best find some different partners with different mannerisms to close to the deal.

“He can be a tough guy to get a hold of,” is something constantly remarked upon in the media about these negotiations (Pete Pisco of CBS Sports and I discussed on “The Daily Flock”). The Ravens readily whisper it to anyone who inquires – but it’s not something they should think emboldens them or exonerates them. General manager Eric DeCosta was on record before the start of the 2025 offseason that this wasn’t a huge priority for him.

How's that look now? How do you think that played with Jackson?

Bisciotti made it clear through the coaching search he is outsourcing his franchise to general manager Eric DeCosta and team president Sashi Brown, but the owner himself might need to work extra hard personally to close this one. If his callous words way back when have something to do with this, perhaps only he can actually secure Jackson becomes a Raven For Life.

I'm not saying lock him on your yacht until he signs ... but something close to it.

The Ravens Harbor (Mostly) Private Concerns

The only other explanation is that some of what has been hinted at and suggested and made it’s way around the league about what this franchise really thinks of Jackson has merit.

It’s been opined about in the past in the local media and national media, and with Jackson now 29 and going on a decade in the league, and the Ravens still not willing to readily move him to the top of the QB-compensation class, it’s being talked about around the league as well. Again, they chose not to utilize the exclusive-rights tag. (Of course it’s fair to wonder if having a hunch the fellow billionaires would potentially collude might have been on their minds as well).

Surely this won’t be the first time you’ll have read that maybe Jackson isn’t enough of a leader. He doesn’t do enough in the offseason. They moved practice to late afternoon because of his sleep schedule. His style of play won’t age well into his 30s. He still doesn’t protect himself enough. What happens when his legs go?

I don’t subscribe to any of that, for the record. But stroking this check has never come easy for Bisciotti. John Harbaugh changed the practice schedule, not Lamar, and if it was to accommodate him, that’s still a coaching decision. Jackson doesn’t wield that power in The Castle. If he did he would have bene extended two days after Josh Allen re-upped with the Bills last year.

But when you get this close to the possible point of no return for 2026 (it’s hard to imagine Jackson won’t cut off talks to focus on football since he serves as both player and agent), after all these sides have already been through, heading to July without a new deal is not a coincidence or mere happenstance.

“Anybody could have taken him the last time,” as NFL analyst Brian Baldinger recently put it to me. “The Atlanta Falcons, pick a team … They already basically announced that before. You’d think for Baltimore and Steve Bisciotti and Eric, you would think you’d never want to get close to that again. KC just gets it done and there isn’t an ounce of fanfare about it … It’s just the cost of doing business … It shouldn’t be any kind of teeth-pulling contest at this point.”

Yet here we are again.

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