According to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, the sense around the league is that Ravens QB Lamar Jackson has come off his desire for a fully-guaranteed contract.
However, Jackson is still seeking more total guarantees than Browns QB Deshaun Watson received, which was $230 million. So that might be a distinction without a difference in the end.
The two sides are still stalemated and Graziano notes there’s not really a clear end in sight. They have until July 17 to negotiate a long-term deal, otherwise they’re locked into the tag for 2023.
Graziano adds for what it’s worth, the Ravens remain highly interested in keeping Jackson, more than any of the other teams who were asked about him at the owners meetings in Arizona this week.
The Ravens used the non-exclusive franchise tag on Jackson, which means Jackson is free to meet with interested teams right now, except none have reached out so far. There hasn’t been any reported progress between him and the Ravens on an extension.
He requested a trade from the team back on March 2 and went public with the request this week. NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport says it’s his understanding the Ravens and Jackson have been engaged in active negotiations over the past week.
He adds the trade request becoming public now may be a leverage tactic by Jackson against the team and not necessarily an indication of a relationship fractured beyond repair.
Jackson, 26, is a former first-round pick of the Ravens back in 2018. He played out the fourth year of his four-year, $9,471,652 contract that included a $5,968,472 signing bonus.
The Ravens picked up Jackson’s fifth-year option that cost them $23 million fully guaranteed for the 2022 season. He was due to be an unrestricted free agent in 2023 when the Ravens used the non-exclusive franchise tag at a cost of $32.3 million fully guaranteed.
In 2022, Jackson appeared in 12 games for the Ravens and completed 62.3 percent of his passes for 2,242 yards, 17 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He also rushed for 764 yards and three touchdowns.
We’ll have more on Jackson as the news is available.
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