“I wouldn’t step on the field till a deal is done” - NFL analyst believes Lamar Jackson should take the unconventional route amid contract talks
Lamar Jackson is at the end of his 2021 NFL season. At one point, heading into the year, he was hoping to finalize his deal with Baltimore Ravens. Now, at the end of the season, the quarterback's lack of a deal is starting to sound alarm bells. One NFL analyst said "enough is enough," calling for the quarterback to potentially hold out in 2022, if a deal isn't reached.
Speaking on the Ari Meirov Show, NFL insider Adam Schefter clearly stated what he thought the quarterback should do.
“If I were Lamar Jackson, it would be my off-season priority to make sure that I don’t step foot on a football field again until I have one of those lucrative contracts that puts me in line with these higher-paid quarterbacks in the league...
"Lamar is his own agent. If I’m my own agent, I’m making sure my deal gets done, especially with the way he plays…I’d be real eerie about stepping on a football field until my deal was done.”
Why the Lamar Jackson era might be coming to a head this offseason
The quarterback was drafted and signed to a rookie deal in 2018. Four full seasons in, the quarterback is getting in range of running out of runway on his current deal. The team gave the quarterback a fifth-year extension, but it is only a band-aid to the situation. If he does not have a deal at the end of 2022, the quarterback will become a free agent.
According to Spotrac, over the next year, he will still be getting a roughly $20 million pay raise, which is a massive amount, but he could be teamless in 12 months. As such, it is past the time when teams typically make a call on a quarterback. If Jackson doesn't get a deal done this offseason, it means the Ravens don't really want him.
He shouldn’t have played last year without a deal.. twitter.com/pff/status/149…
Of course, the quarterback has given the team plenty of apprehension with his play erosion over the last several years. Year over year, the quarterback has thrown fewer touchdowns and more interceptions since winning the MVP in 2019. Last season, the quarterback failed to finish the season, and the team missed the playoffs for the first time in his career.
This Lamar Jackson to Mark Andrews connection is still absolutely bonkers https://t.co/gpZYl8qgkd
Put simply, it is a tough time to ask for a massive pay raise. Had Jackson bounced back this year, the team may have already tied the knot. Instead, the team is stuck between a rock and a hard place. What will the Ravens ultimately settle upon? How the Ravens and Jackson play the next several months could determine the future of the franchise.