Multiple NFL Execs Expect Lamar Jackson To Eventually Request Trade

According to Jason La Canfora, Ravens QB Lamar Jackson is not any closer to signing a new extension with the team after leaving minicamp, while Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes received an extension that reset the market despite his major injury.

La Canfora says multiple NFL executives and agents have told him they expect Jackson to request a trade if talks drag on, as it feels like Baltimore and Jackson once again are struggling to reach common ground on a new deal.

“If he’s not signed by Week 1, I don’t think he’s back (in 2027),” one longtime personnel executive said, via SportsBoom. “Something keeps holding them back… Something’s not right there.”

The Ravens were open about their desire to get a new deal done with Jackson this offseason before the start of free agency in March. That didn’t happen, though. 

Jackson had his contract restructured and is under contract through 2027, with unrestricted free agency scheduled for 2028. His cap hit in 2027 is $84.3 million, and he has a no-tag clause as well. 

Both Jackson, who doesn’t have an agent and represents himself, and the Ravens play things close to the vest when it comes to contract talks, so there’s very little information for other teams and the media to go on. 

The last time Jackson was up for an extension, talks also dragged on as he sought a fully guaranteed contract and he did request a trade. Baltimore ultimately used the non-exclusive tag on Jackson that could have opened him up to an offer sheet from another team, but no one else engaged. The two sides agreed on a new deal out of nowhere just before the draft. 

The two-time MVP has indicated he’s leaving the fully guaranteed contract talk back in 2022 when asked about it this offseason, one of the few things either side has said about negotiations. 

Jackson, 28, 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, which 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. 

Baltimore later signed Jackson to a five-year, $260 million extension. He’s due base salaries of $20.25 million, $51.25 million, and $51.25 million in the final three years of the deal.

In 2025, Jackson appeared in 13 games for the Ravens and threw for 2,549 yards, 21 touchdowns, and seven interceptions while completing 63.6 percent of his passes. He also rushed 67 times for 349 yards and two touchdowns.

We will have more on Jackson as it becomes available.