Lamar Jackson is playing on substitute for the fifth year.
Owings Mills, MD -- It's a weak market for quarterbacks in the NFL.
As a result, teams are willing to pay a high price for top-tier talent.
The Broncos went on to win their 2022 first round selections (number 9 overall), 2023 first round selections, 2022 second round selections, another second round selection in 2023 and Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson to acquire Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson. Traded the selection for the fifth round.
Green Bay re-signed 39-year-old Aaron Rodgers for a four-year, $200 million extension.
Quarterbacks are able to secure these types of deals because there aren't so many playmakers available in free agency and draft this year.
It also stresses the importance of the Ravens reaching a long-term deal with Jackson. And if they can't come up with a new contract before next season, they could possibly tag and trade King to get his ransom back.
Jackson, the 2019 NFL MVP, will earn $23.02 million this season under his fifth-year option. This means he will be earning $1.28 million per week, which is roughly equal to his full 2021 salary.
If the Ravens can't reach a long-term deal with Jackson, they could put a franchise tag on him in 2023, which will pay him an estimated $43.5 million per season. A second tag team would require him to raise 120%, which would reportedly increase his salary to an estimated $52.2 million.
This equates to $118.7M over three years.
The Ravens may decide to take this route because these short-term, expensive deals will not affect the team in the long run.
If Jackson stays healthy, continues to progress as a passer, and goes deep into the playoffs, his value will skyrocket. But if injured or retracted, Jackson could cost himself millions of dollars in the long term.
These are hypothetical scenarios, but they should be considered.
Either way, the Ravens need to make a decision with Jackson and his future with the franchise.
Asked about finalizing a deal, Ravens GM Eric DeCosta replied, "I hope that at some point, we will." "I think we've discussed it at length, and I said this earlier: We're on Lamar's [Jackson's] urgency. So, he and I have had constant discussions. We've also had a lot of conversations lately. He knows how to find me; I know how to find him. I was so happy to see him work with some of our guys on the west coast recently.
"It's exciting [and] something that we really think will help us this year be the best team that we can be. He's the kind of person that we'll be when the Ravens come three, four, five years from now." When we think about it, we envision Lamar as a very, very big part of that team and certainly a player who can help us win the Super Bowl."
Huntley's value
Another interesting scenario to watch is the future of Tyler Huntley, Jackson's main backup.
When Jackson was sidelined, Huntley played well and the Ravens asked to keep him. Huntley will earn $780,000 the next season and will then be eligible for free agency in 2023.
However, teams may be interested in acquiring Huntley because the market is so hungry for quarterbacks. If a team offers a second or third round pick, the Ravens have to listen. Baltimore could have had Josh Johnson as a stopgap backup before settling on a longer-term solution.
It is unlikely that Huntley will be traded prior to training camp. However, if a team loses a starter due to injury, the Ravens may receive an offer they cannot refuse.