Is Lamar Jackson the key to $7BN Washington Commanders sale? Dan Snyder urged to trade for Ravens QB before mega sale
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson received a non-exclusive franchise tag from the Ravens last week and could potentially be traded as he is free to negotiate with teams.
One of the teams that could be interested in Jackson is the Washington Commanders. The Commanders don't have a franchise quarterback yet and have already moved on from Carson Wetnz and Taylor Heinicke this off-season.
Commanders' owner Dan Snyder is reportedly on his way out and a team sale is "imminent."
While Dan Snyder is in the midst of selling his team, Sports Illustrated's Peter King thinks the team should acquire Lamar Jackson.
King said:
“Dan Snyder, evidently, from what you hear, wants $7 million or $7 billion for this franchise, and nobody has offered $7 billion yet. What happens if you signed Lamar Jackson, your fan base for the first time in 100 years."
King added that buyers would be more attracted to spending a little extra money buying the team if they had a 26-year-old former MVP on the roster such as Jackson.
"So, somebody has got to come up to do that 7 billion. Aren't you, as a buyer, going to be tempted to have a 26-year-old former Most Valuable Player, as your quarterback in his prime?"
"Aren't you going to be tempted to then say, Damn, and I'll go up from 6.5 to seven? Because I'm going to have a quarterback who's going to allow me to compete with Dallas and Philadelphia.”
Dan Snyder and Tanya Snyder have cleared out of the Commanders facility
According to Mike Florio, Dan Snyder and Tanya Snyder have vacated the Washington Commanders' offices in preparation for the sale of the franchise.
A collaboration between D.C. billionaire Mitchell Rales and New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers owner Josh Harris is reportedly in the works to bid on the Commanders.
How come Lamar Jackson hasn't generated that much interest from other teams?
While a few analysts and sports media personalities have linked the Washington Commanders to Jackson, it doesn't seem like they have any interest in him at the time.
There are a few reasons why teams may not be interested in acquiring Jackson. A team would have to send the Ravens two first-round picks in return for Jackson as he was placed on the non-exclusive franchise tag.
Teams would also have to likely change their offensive game plan/strategy to his style which involved him running the ball a lot.
Jackson has also had knee and foot injuries at the end of the last two seasons. Teams may be concerned about his longevity as he's already run the ball over 700 times in his young career.
We'll see how soon it is for Snyder to sell the team, but it's likely won't be doing it with Jackson being a part of the team.