HEADLINES

Baltimore Ravens News & Rumors

Ravens Facing Uphill Battle To Extend Lamar Jackson?

August 21st, 2022 at 8:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

We are in Lamar Jackson‘s 20th month of extension eligibility, and unless the Ravens can lock down their quarterback by Week 1, this saga will pass the two-year point. Jackson is not planning to negotiate in-season.

More information regarding terms has come out in this process. The Ravens are believed to have offered Jackson more than Kyler Murray is making, Jay Glazer of Fox Sports said during a TV appearance Sunday night (via Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio). The Cardinals gave Murray a five-year, $230.1MM extension in July.

While accepting this contract would make Jackson the NFL’s second-highest-paid passer, on average, Glazer added that Deshaun Watson‘s deal is complicating this process — one he deems an uphill battle for the Ravens. This marks the second report to link Watson’s outlier Browns contract, guarantee-wise, to the Ravens’ talks with Jackson. The former MVP was connected to pursuing a fully guaranteed deal surpassing Watson’s $230MM guarantee. Considering Watson’s full guarantee is nearly $130MM north of any other NFLer’s, Jackson trying to secure such terms obviously represents an issue in these complex negotiations.

The Ravens were believed to have offered a contract matching Josh Allen‘s $43MM-per-year pact during the sides’ 2021 negotiations, but the agent-less quarterback did not sign. It is unknown what the precise terms were in that proposal, beyond the AAV, just as it is unknown how the Ravens have structured their latest offer. But Murray, Watson and Aaron Rodgers have surpassed Patrick Mahomes‘ $45MM high-water AAV mark this offseason, raising the bar for Jackson. Baltimore’s three-time Pro Bowler, whose 2018 starter debut keyed a stretch that produced three straight playoff berths, targeting more than what Murray is making is unsurprising. With Rodgers’ $50.3MM figure — albeit on a shorter-term deal — more than $4MM north of Murray’s, a sizable gap for a potential Jackson deal exists.

If Jackson and the Ravens cannot agree on a deal by Week 1, the franchise tag scenario enters the equation. The team would have until the March 2023 deadline to tag Jackson. With the exclusive tag amount expected to come in north of $40MM for quarterbacks next year, that would represent a significant cap hold for the Ravens entering free agency. Dallas navigated around a tagged quarterback salary in 2020, extending Dak Prescott in 2021, but Washington did not, losing Kirk Cousins after two tagged seasons (2016-17).

Latest On Ravens, Lamar Jackson

August 17th, 2022 at 11:21am CST by Sam Robinson

Lamar Jackson‘s Ravens negotiations have not produced much in the way of prices, but the team looks to be prepared to pay the former MVP a top-market deal. Well, they were nearly there last year.

Patrick Mahomes‘ $45MM-per-year deal topped the quarterback market when the 2021 season ended, with Josh Allen‘s $43MM-AAV accord being second. During talks last year, the Ravens were prepared to hit the Allen threshold for Jackson, with Albert Breer of SI.com noting the team matched that AAV in a 2021 offer.

[RELATED: How Will Ravens’ Jackson Talks Conclude?]

It is not known how many years the Ravens proposed at the $43MM-per-year price or how the offer was structured, but Jackson did not budge. The Ravens were willing to concede Jackson was a $40MM-per-year QB during their 2021 negotiations, though the agent-less quarterback’s price has undoubtedly risen since. Aaron Rodgers, Kyler Murray and Deshaun Watson have since bumped Mahomes and Allen down, AAV-wise, to Nos. 4 and 5 among NFL earners.

Jackson, 25, has obviously been patient here. Despite being extension-eligible since January 2021, the three-time Pro Bowler is less than a month away from his fifth-year option season. Jackson has also set a firm Week 1 deadline for negotiating with the Ravens — something he did not do last year. This raises the stakes for Baltimore’s negotiations, which seem to have picked up in recent weeks. This process has gone from Ravens decision-makers admitting the quarterback did not seem interested in a deal to Jackson indicating he hopes a contract comes to pass before Week 1.

The dual-threat QB has also been connected to wanting Watson-level guarantees. While Jackson is not in as strong a position to command that historic structure ($230MM fully guaranteed — $120MM north of any other NFLer’s guarantees), Watson’s contract has worked his favor. Jackson forcing this issue to the 2023 March franchise tag deadline runs the risk of his value dropping, via another injury or a decline in performance, but it also could prompt the Ravens to apply an exclusive tag. An injury also may not damage Jackson’s value at all, given how the Cowboys’ negotiations with Dak Prescott played out. Staring at a second Prescott tag clogging their cap sheet, the Cowboys came in with a big offer just before a tag needed to be applied in 2021.

An exclusive Jackson tag in 2023 would be worth around $45MM, Breer adds. A second tag in this scenario would top $50MM in 2024. While the Browns are evidently prepared to have Watson on their 2023 cap sheet at $54.9MM, no team has gone into a season with a player tied to a $45MM cap hit. The Ravens using the exclusive tag, which prevents offer sheets coming in, next year would leave a monster Jackson cap hold on the team’s books and hurt the organization in terms of adding talent in free agency.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/16/22

August 16th, 2022 at 7:04pm CST by Ben Levine

With the NFL dropping the roster limit to 85 players today, we’ve got a long list of minor moves to pass along:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Ravens CB Marcus Peters Activated Off PUP

August 15th, 2022 at 7:04pm CST by Ely Allen

Baltimore finally saw one-half of their feared cornerback tandem return to practice today as Marcus Peters was activated off the physically unable to perform list. After passing his physical, Peters was back out on the practice field for the first time since September of last year. 

Peters suffered a torn ACL just four days before the Ravens’ season opener last year, filing into a line of falling dominos that took out much of the Ravens’ running back and cornerback rooms. He would miss the entire season after only sitting out five games in his previous six seasons.

The Ravens will be ecstatic at the return of their ball-hawk safety. While opposite-side starter Marlon Humphrey excels at separating ball-carriers from the football with forced fumbles, Peters is a dying breed of cornerback that excels in making sure the ball never gets to the receiver. He has seven interceptions in 24 games with the Ravens and, even though he missed all of last season, no one in the league has more interceptions since Peters entered the league than his own 31 picks.

Baltimore also announced the return of second-year safety Ar’Darius Washington from the PUP list. Washington impressed as an undrafted player out of TCU last year by making the Ravens’ final 53-man roster. He appeared in three games before a broken foot ended his season prematurely. Washington will return to an extremely deep safety room that currently houses Marcus Williams, Chuck Clark, first-round rookie Kyle Hamilton, Tony Jefferson, and Geno Stone.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/15/22

August 15th, 2022 at 5:39pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

  • Waived: DE Carson Taylor

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

 Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions 

Green Bay Packers 

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts 

Jacksonville Jaguars 

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins 

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Lamar Jackson Won’t Negotiate Extension During Regular Season

August 13th, 2022 at 9:46pm CST by Adam La Rose

For the second day in a row, there has been an important development with respect to Lamar Jackson‘s extension efforts. ESPN’s Jamison Hensley reports that the Ravens quarterback won’t negotiate a new contract once the regular season begins. 

[RELATED: Jackson Seeking Fully Guaranteed Deal?]

When asked about a firm deadline approaching in the form of Week 1, Jackson said, “We’re coming up to it. It’s coming up. The season’s coming up. We’re going to be good for the season.”

The 25-year-old also repeated his desire to finalize a new contract in time for the season, which is in line with remarks he made in the build-up to training camp last month. Jackson is currently set to play on the fifth-year option this season, which will pay him just over $23MM.

One (or two) subsequent seasons played on the franchise tag remains an option if a deal can’t be finalized by next July, a path which this situation seemed to be headed towards for much of the offseason. With negotiations – which at all times have been conducted personally between Jackson and Ravens GM Eric DeCosta – potentially becoming more urgent, the lack of leverage the former has relative to Deshaun Watson as his trade market led to a fully guaranteed pact contrasts with the significant toll a franchise tag would take on the Ravens’ 2023 cap situation.

“I’m very confident that it will get done when it gets done,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “You can’t really rush it. I don’t think either side wants to rush anything.”

With just under one month remaining until the regular season, there is still time for both sides to finalize a deal which would all-but assuredly place Jackson at or near the top of the QB market. In the absence of an extension coming together in the immediate future, though, this situation will be set to drag on for several more months.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/13/22

August 13th, 2022 at 7:50pm CST by Adam La Rose

Today’s minor moves around the league:

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Tennessee Titans

AFC North Rumors: Pickett, Ravens, Boykin

August 12th, 2022 at 7:31pm CST by Ely Allen

It appears that the Steelers‘ quarterback job is Mitchell Trubisky‘s to lose and, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, rookie first-round pick Kenny Pickett is not quite ready to push Trubisky for the role.

Pittsburgh has been riding with Trubisky as the first-team quarterback for much of the offseason with incumbent backup Mason Rudolph as the primary second stringer. While it’s become quite trendy for rookie quarterbacks to start from Day 1, Pittsburgh has stayed patient with Pickett with no plans of rushing him into the starting role.

Rudolph has proven to be better competition for Trubisky early in the preseason and has truly made things interesting. In order for him to overtake Trubisky on the depth chart, though, he’d likely have to be near perfect this preseason and will need Trubisky to fall off.

Pickett in the meantime will have this time to grow and mature at the NFL level. He still may be the quarterback of the future in Pittsburgh, but he’ll have to take the old-fashioned route of sitting and learning before he gets his opportunity on the field.

Here are a few other rumors from around the AFC North, starting with a rumor from the rival Ravens:

  • When considering Baltimore’s weakest position groups, wide receiver and pass rusher are the two most often mentioned. But the Ravens‘ lack of depth at inside linebacker could cause them to reach out for some help, according to Jeff Zrebiec at The Athletic. With Patrick Queen and Josh Bynes sitting out the team’s first preseason game last night, Malik Harrison and Kristian Welch saw initial snaps with the defense. Several undrafted rookies came in after that. Without even considering that the combination of Queen and Bynes is not the scariest inside linebacker duo, that depth is concerning. Zrebiec suggests the easy answer is a reunion with free agent L.J. Fort who has spent most of the last three seasons with Baltimore. If things look desperate, though, a call could always be made for a price-check on Bears’ disgruntled linebacker Roquan Smith.
  • In a question and answer this week, The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly addressed the potential roster outlook at receiver for the Steelers this year. With the depth chart topped by Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, George Pickens, and Calvin Austin III, the question was brought up who slots in as the team’s fifth-receiver. Kaboly threw out an idea suggesting that if Austin can serve double-duty as a return-man, that could affect the roster status of Anthony Miller, Cody White, or Gunner Olszewski. But he was adamant that offseason waiver claim Miles Boykin would not be making the final roster. While Kaboly states there in an array of reasons for this certainty, he points to salary as the main one. The Steelers picked up Boykin with his rookie contract from the Ravens. The final year of that deal is set to pay Boykin $2.54MM with a $2.75MM cap hit.

Ravens QB Lamar Jackson Seeking Fully Guaranteed Deal?

August 12th, 2022 at 2:22pm CST by Sam Robinson

Kyler Murray landed a contract that, in terms of average annual value, eclipses Deshaun Watson‘s. At five years and $230.5MM, it is easy to see how Murray’s camp used Watson’s deal to benefit the former No. 1 overall pick. But Murray’s contract, lacking the unique circumstances that drove the Browns into historic financial territory for Watson, is not fully guaranteed.

While over half of Murray’s contract is not guaranteed at signing, the $103.3MM in full guarantees rank second in the NFL to Watson’s $230MM. Lamar Jackson may not be willing to make a Murray-like compromise on guarantees. The Ravens quarterback is believed to want a fully guaranteed extension worth more than what the Browns are paying Watson, Jason Cole of Outkick.com notes.

Extension-eligible since January 2021, Jackson has certainly not made an extension a priority on the level Murray did. The Cardinals quarterback aimed at a pre-Year 4 deal. Jackson is going into his fifth season, and the Ravens’ top three decision-makers — Steve Bisciotti, John Harbaugh and GM Eric DeCosta — have said publicly the former MVP was not actively pursuing an offseason extension. Momentum toward an extension has appeared to pick up since Jackson showed for minicamp, however. If Jackson is pursuing a Watson-structured deal, he likely will begin this season playing on his fifth-year option ($23MM).

[RELATED: How Will Ravens’ Jackson Negotiations End?]

Watson was able to secure his historically player-friendly structure due to the four-team bidding war — trimmed to four by Texans GM Nick Caserio — commencing in March. The Browns being on the verge of losing the battle prompted them to offer the monster contract. With the Ravens having exclusive negotiating rights with Jackson potentially until 2025 — via the two-franchise tag arrangement, a Kirk Cousins-esque scenario Bisciotti referenced earlier this year — he would not be in the same kind of position to secure such a deal. Even if Jackson has shown more than Watson, he does not have that kind of leverage.

It would cost the Ravens close to $40MM to tag Jackson next year. Although Cousins, Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan had $40MM-plus cap numbers entering March, their respective teams adjusted those figures — the Falcons by trading their QB — to avoid those cap-clogging totals. No player enters this season with a cap number higher than $39MM. Only four players have $30MM-plus cap hits. If Jackson plays a second season on the tag, his cap figure would come in around $48MM, Cole adds. While that would be a record, the salary cap’s rise will lead to $40MM-plus figures becoming more common in the near future. Watson’s fully guaranteed contract will bring cap numbers north of $54MM from 2023-26.

Still, the Ravens seeing Jackson’s cap hold spike from $23MM to around $40MM will make for more challenging roster building come 2023. That represents some leverage for the three-time Pro Bowler. Jackson’s star power notwithstanding, it is difficult to foresee Baltimore agreeing to such a deal. Jackson’s rushing volume (615 carries through four seasons — 148 more than any other QB through four years) potentially shortening his career is a component that is surely factoring into these negotiations on the Ravens’ side. He has also gone from first in QBR (2019) to seventh to 17th over the past three seasons. An uncertain wide receiver situation this year may challenge Jackson more — as both a passer and a runner, with the Ravens not exactly planning to deviate from their ground-oriented attack.

Jackson, 25, continues to represent himself, with the NFLPA providing counsel. He is not planning to negotiate with the Ravens during the season. Finality, for 2022 at least, is approaching in this situation.

Ravens Notes: OL, Edwards, WR Search

August 12th, 2022 at 12:55pm CST by Adam La Rose

Ravens head coach John Harbaugh recently stated that the injury suffered by rookie center Tyler Linderbaum wasn’t expected to be serious. After further testing, that outlook remains the same, though there have been conflicting reports on the nature of the injury.

Earlier this week, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo indicated that the foot ailment is a Lisfranc injury (video link). That would be particularly relevant in Linderbaum’s case, as he played through the same injury in college. Rapoport added that this latest issue was a “reoccurrence” of the injury suffered during the first-rounder’s time at Iowa, but that it was a sprain, rather than a rupture, leading to further belief in the original one-to-two week recovery timeline.

However, Harbaugh disputed that reporting, instead stating that Linderbaum suffered a soft-tissue injury. “It’s a different ligament,” Harbaugh said, via the Baltimore Sun’s Jonas Shaffer. “So he’s had the Lisfranc before. There’s no separation. There’s no Lisfranc sprain, per se.” He nevertheless confirmed that the issue is “not serious,” so Linderbaum is still expected to be available for Week 1 of the regular season, where he is penciled in as the team’s starting center.

Here are some other notes from Charm City:

  • A couple of the Ravens’ wideouts are also banged up. Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic tweets that James Proche could be out for “a few weeks” due to a soft tissue injury of his own. In addition, Tylan Wallace sprained his knee during last night’s preseason game. Slated to hold the third and fourth positions on the WR depth chart, respectively, any significant absence from either player would weaken what could already be the thinnest position group on Baltimore’s roster. As Zrebiec adds, the team “may have no choice now” but to add a veteran still on the open market.
  • The team appears to be on track to get RB J.K. Dobbins back to full health in time for the regular season, but the outlook isn’t as good for his backup. Per Zrebiec, Gus Edwards is “considered a long shot” to be available for Week 1. Both backs missed all of last season due to knee injuries, and their return will prove crucial to the team’s rushing attack. Edwards has two years remaining on his current contract, with cap hits of $4.5MM and $5.6MM this year and next.
  • The one spot which has been undecided throughout the offseason along the offensive line is left guard. Ben Powers remains in the lead for the starting spot, reports ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. His consistency currently places him ahead of Tyre Phillips, who is seen as having more upside but has missed significant time during each of his first two seasons. With the top two spots likely going to Powers and Phillips, 2021 third-rounder Ben Cleveland (who missed the first week of training camp due to a failed conditioning test) is now a “long shot” to make the roster.
Load More Posts