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The Ravens' ongoing contract negotiations with Lamar Jackson appear to be quite complicated

You can make a case that the Baltimore Ravens have had the most hectic offseason in the entire NFL, and their work may not be done just yet. Whether it be adding players through the draft, handing out big contracts in free agency, or even pulling off a trade for Maxx Crosby, only to back out of the deal at the last second, the Baltimore’s offseason has featured a little bit of everything.

And yet, the most important item of business is still on the team’s to-do list. That involves handing superstar quarterback Lamar Jackson a new contract extension, as his salary cap hit in the final year of his deal in 2027 is currently set to come in at $84.34 million. To this point, not much information has come out regarding these negotiations, which recently led Ravens insider Jamison Hensley to address the situation.

Ravens’ Contract Negotiation with Lamar Jackson is Quite Complicated

Jackson signed a five-year, $260 million contract extension with Baltimore back in 2023, and while there are still two years left on that deal, his aforementioned cap hit has made it so that the team wants to get something done here sooner rather than later. To this point in the offseason, though, there hasn’t been much movement on a new contract for Jackson.

There’s a lot to take into consideration when looking at these negotiations. For starters, Jackson doesn’t have an agent, which is a rarity in the NFL nowadays. That’s an added wrinkle that the Ravens’ front office has to deal with, and while it has managed to negotiate a big-money extension with Jackson in the past, it’s still a bit of an odd situation for the team to work through.

Beyond that, there’s a sense of urgency from Baltimore to get a new deal done that Jackson doesn’t seem to possess. Sure, there’s a lot of time left in the offseason, but this is something the Ravens wanted to take care of months ago. While Jackson’s attendance at voluntary offseason programs is encouraging, the lack of legitimate progress towards a new contract has raised some concerns.

“This is a unique situation because Jackson doesn’t have an agent and represents himself,” Hensley wrote for ESPN. “The questions about Jackson’s future increased in March when he and the Ravens didn’t agree to a new deal even after owner Steve Bisciotti spoke to him about the urgency to get an extension completed before the start of free agency. The encouraging sign has been Jackson’s attendance at the team’s offseason workout program and first minicamp.”

Should Ravens Be Concerned About Lamar Jackson?

GettyLamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens watches action during the first half of a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on August 24, 2024 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

The good news for the Ravens is that they already restructured Jackson’s deal for the upcoming season, lowering his cap hit to a manageable $34.5 million figure. So while the team wants to get something done in this department, it doesn’t necessarily have to. The longer they wait, though, the less leverage they have with Jackson and his untenable 2027 cap hit.

Jackson will obviously want to get that lowered so that the front office can build up the roster around him, but he’s playing his hand perfectly in these negotiations so far. Baltimore will be incentivized to get Jackson to put pen to paper on a new deal before the start of the upcoming campaign, and while there’s no reason to worry about his status just yet, that could lead to him milking his longtime team for every dollar possible.