Ravens QB Lamar Jackson: 'No Doubt' Deal Would Get Done
Analysis 5/4/23
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson never lost confidence he'd sign a long-term deal with the team this offseason.
"I thought we would get the process done there," Jackson said at a news conference on Thursday. "There wasn't a doubt in my mind. Other teams reached out, but like I said before I didn't really care about other teams. I wanted to be here. I want to be a Raven. Said [that in] 2018, I meant that. I wanted to get this done before my time is up and branch off somewhere else. I want to win a Super Bowl here."
Jackson and the Ravens agreed to a five-year contract extension worth $260 million on April 27. The new deal makes Jackson the highest-paid quarterback and player in the NFL. The contract also includes a no-trade and no-tag clause, CBS reported.
The 33rd Team analyst Joe Banner believes the Ravens and Jackson must've felt relief after the deal was done.
“I’m sure [the Ravens] are incredibly relieved,” Banner said when the deal was announced. “Because the idea of trying to find a new quarterback when you have a difference-maker guy that’s been a former MVP — that’s not where you want to be. And frankly, it’s very, very scary.”
Jackson's comments about not wavering on playing for Baltimore are intriguing, given he publicly revealed he had requested the Ravens trade him before the team used the non-exclusive tag on March 7.
Jackson and general manager Eric DeCosta said negotiations turned a corner on April 25 when Jackson read over an email with a proposal from DeCosta, and the quarterback "liked the language." That proposal prompted Jackson's reaction on Twitter.
One of the most talked about aspects of the negotiation process was Jackson's decision to represent himself. Many felt Jackson would be better off with an agent, but Jackson feels becoming the league's highest-paid player vindicates his decision.
"I didn't do this to prove anyone wrong," Jackson said. "If anything, I proved myself right. Like, I know what I'm doing. I feel like I did the right thing."
The quarterback said he had new agents reaching out to him every week, but Jackson told them he didn't care about their past accomplishments and only trusted himself.
Jackson’s record of 45-16 (.738) is the fourth-best of any quarterback who debuted in the Super Bowl era, trailing only Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady and Roger Staubach. He was the NFL’s unanimous MVP after a magical 2019 season. The Ravens have struggled when Jackson has been injured the past two seasons, going 3-9 in his absence.
Baltimore spent the offseason adding weapons for Jackson. The team signed WR Odell Beckham Jr. to a one-year deal, added WR Nelson Agholor and drafted Boston College WR Zay Flowers in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Baltimore also hired Todd Monken to be its new offensive coordinator after he helped the Georgia Bulldogs win two straight National Championships.
"It's going to be a lot of fun," coach John Harbaugh said about the offense. "Lamar is already looking at the playbook. It's got a chance to be exciting and fun. It's got a chance to be a winning offense. That's what we want to be. The expectations are always high."
With their new offense, the Ravens and Jackson will look to improve on their 10-7 finish and loss in the wild-card round from last season.