“They had to do this out of desperation”- Former NFL scout slams Ravens for splashing $15m on Odell Beckham Jr. to make Lamar Jackson happy
Will Lamar Jackson be convinced to stay now?
The signing of Odell Beckham Jr. on Sunday made waves around the NFL. The Baltimore Ravens grabbed his services on a one-year deal that could reach up to $18 million due to incentives, and while nobody doubts Beckham's quality, the value has been scrutinized by many analysts.
Former NFL scout John Middlekauff was livid once he discovered how much the Ravens were paying Beckham, but he knows that the team doesn't have many options based on the standoff with Jackson:
"I've been stewing on this and thinking about it for about 24 hours now. And it really kind of hit me. This all gets back to the quarterback situation, and it felt like they had to do this out of desperation to just try to get Lamar in somewhat of their good graces.
"Reports have been that they have been talking that Lamar had been recruiting them. And because the situation has gotten so messy and let's face it, (general manager) Eric DeCosta, I think we have to question how good he is at his job.
"And now they're so far down the road on this ugliness and messiness with Lamar and years away from when they could have extended him. And now the number so outrageous, you have to do things like sign Odell Beckham Jr. for $15 million”.
What's stopping Lamar Jackson from extending his contract with the Ravens?
Many NFL teams decide to lock up their star quarterbacks as soon as possible, but the Ravens waited longer than normal to extend Lamar. Now, they're having many problems.
He wants his contract to be fully guaranteed, but teams are not willing to do so. Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti was critical of Deshaun Watson's contract, which was fully guaranteed at signing, due to what that may cause other teams to do.
Jackson has a play style that makes him susceptible to injuries. If the Ravens give him all the money he wants, they're going to risk not just one or two seasons, but the long term of the franchise as well. You don't want to pay a lot of money for a quarterback who can't play.
The issue is that not only would this be one of the league's biggest contracts ever but with all the guaranteed money coming, this would put the Ravens at a knife edge. If they manage to keep Jackson, times will be happy in Baltimore, but there will be a huge cost for doing so.