When Lamar Jackson shot down 'false narrative' about wanting to leave his beloved Baltimore Ravens for greener pastures
The situation between Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens soured rather quickly. The franchise recently exercised the non-exclusive franchise tag option on him for the 2023 NFL season.
The move will see them incur a salary-cap hit of $32.4 million for 2023. The decision was made after they reportedly failed to reach an agreement with the 2019 NFL league MVP for a contract extension.
Jackson, though, isn't too happy with the proceedings. Taking to Twitter, he declared that he had handed in a trade request:
in regards to my future plans. As of March 2nd I requested a trade from the Ravens organization for which the Ravens has not been interested in meeting my value, any and everyone that’s has met me or been around me know I love the game of football and my dream is to help a team
In a thread of tweets, the QB went on to clarify his decision to Ravens fans:
"You all are great but I had to make a business decision that was best for my family and I. No matter how far I go or where my career takes me, I’ll continue to be close to my fans of Baltimore Flock nation and the entire State of Maryland. You’ll See me again."
Many believe that negotiations fell through due to the QB's desire for a fully guaranteed contract, similar to that of Deshaun Watson.
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This, of course, is in stark contrast to what he said almost a year ago. Once again taking to social media, the QB debunked rumors of him moving on in 2022 and claimed that he had no intentions of leaving Baltimore. He said:
"I love my Ravens I don’t know who the hell putting that false narrative out that I’m having thoughts about leaving stop tryna read my mind."
I love my Ravens I don’t know who the hell putting that false narrative out that I’m having thoughts about leaving stop tryna read my mind🙄
Colts strong contenders to land Lamar Jackson
Quite a few teams would be interested in making a move for Lamar Jackson given that he's now available on the market. Among them are the Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts are still in search of their long-term replacement for Andrew Luck. While attending the annual NFL team owners' meeting, Colts GM Chris Ballard hinted at potentially swooping in for the Ravens star:
"Anytime a special player is available, which he is, you've got to do the work. I'm not gonna get into deep discussions on where it's at or what we're doing or what we might do."
The Colts currently have roughly $20 million in cap space available. The franchise, though, will most likely have to restructure some of its current deals to fit the massive deal the QB is reportedly chasing.