In the end, Lamar Jackson got a contract that is in line with one of the best quarterbacks in the league which he is.
The Ravens were about to get it done right before the draft.
In a span of a month, quarterback Lamar Jackson went from wanting out of Baltimore to signing the largest deal in Ravens history.
Consider it another one of Jackson’s jaw-dropping spin moves.
After 27 months of challenging negotiations, Jackson reached a five-year deal with the Ravens on Thursday, the team announced. Financial terms weren’t immediately known.
“For the last few months, there has been a lot of he said, she said,” Jackson said in a video posted by the Ravens on their Twitter account. “A lot of nail biting. A lot of head-scratching going on.”
Jackson then held up a football with a Ravens logo and said, “But for the next five years, it’s a lot of ‘flock’ going on.”
Jackson, who represented himself in the negotiations, landed his deal 10 days after Jalen Hurts signed a five-year contract extension for $255 million, including $180 million guaranteed. It also came shortly before the start of the NFL draft, when the Ravens could have selected a quarterback in the first round.
Jackson turned a franchise that had missed the playoffs for three straight seasons into a winner again. His career record of 46-16 (.738) is the fourth-best of any starting quarterback to debut in the Super Bowl era.
In 2019, his first full season as a starter, Jackson became the second unanimous selection as NFL MVP. He led the NFL in touchdown passes (36) and set the league record for most rushing yards by a quarterback (1,206).
But Jackson’s performance have been mired by injuries and uneven play recently. Over the last two seasons, he threw 33 touchdowns and 20 interceptions and missed a total of 11 games, including a 24-17 playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Despite the lack of progress in contract talks over the years, Ravens officials repeatedly remained optimistic that a deal would get done. Earlier this month, Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said, “He’s the right player for this team to lead us to where we want to be.”
Here is a breakdown of the contract.
We’ve agreed in principle on a 5-year contract extension with QB @Lj_era8‼️
😈😈😈😈 pic.twitter.com/tQj1Rzqcha
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) April 27, 2023
Jalen Hurts securing $179.3M practically guaranteed, and not $231M guaranteed (+Watson), was probably a big step in Lamar Jackson willing to give the Ravens a chance to offer up a sizable, but not fully guaranteed, extension.
$180M is a pretty good floor if you can get it.
— Spotrac (@spotrac) April 27, 2023
Largest Total Value #NFL Contract
1. Patrick Mahomes, $450M
2. Lamar Jackson, $260M*
3. Josh Allen, $258M
4. Jalen Hurts, $255M
5. Russell Wilson, $242Mper @JosinaAnderson
— Spotrac (@spotrac) April 27, 2023
Assuming a 3% agent fee cap, and aside from whatever money he may have doled out to "consultants", Lamar Jackson stands to have saved at least $5.5M (3% of the $185M practically guaranteed) in this negotiation.
It's not for everyone, but it appears to have worked out well here.
— Spotrac (@spotrac) April 27, 2023
League source just added that the total "guaranteed" portion on Lamar Jackson's deal is $185M. https://t.co/L8FHaAxEIU
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) April 27, 2023
