Ravens Sign Lamar Jackson
Lamar Jackson is officially in the flock. On Tuesday, the Ravens announced that Jackson has signed his rookie contract. 
Heading into the draft, no one was quite sure where the quarterback would land. Some projected that he would wind up as a first round selection while others said he could slide all the way to the third round. With the final pick in the draft, the Ravens made Jackson a first rounder by trading their 52nd and 125th picks and a 2019 second-round selection to the Eagles for the No. 32 and No. 132 selections.
In Baltimore, the athletic QB will back up Joe Flacco. In time, the Ravens hope that he can blossom into their next starting signal caller. Already, the Louisville product has impressed teammates in practice.
“He’s been great. Obviously you know why we took him,” safety Eric Weddle told NFL Network recently. “He’s as talented of a player that I’ve seen coming into my 12th year. He’s got a live arm, he can sling it. Obviously, his ability to run and shake guys — you see it in team drills where things break down, he gets out on the perimeter and guys aren’t even close to him.”
Per the terms of his draft slot, Jackson will earn $9.471MM over the course of his four-year deal. And, because he was a first-round choice, the Ravens can control him through 2022 via the fifth-year option.
Minor NFL Transactions: 6/1/18
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: RB Sherman Badie
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: TE Jaeden Graham
- Waived/injured: DL Joey Ivie
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: LB Chris Board
- Waived: DE Da’Sean Downey
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Waived from injured reserve: TE Zach Conque
Nico Siragusa, Carl Davis Had 2018 Surgeries
- Optimism exists around Ravens cornerback Jimmy Smith, who saw a strong season end early in 2017 because of a torn Achilles, but Jeff Zreibec of the Baltimore Sun notes the veteran may not be ready for the start of training camp. The career-long Raven is going into his age-30 season.
- Additional Ravens’ timelines are coming into focus as well. Defensive lineman Carl Davis, who started nine games last season, underwent surgery to repair a tear in his shoulder earlier this offseason, Zreibec reports. The former third-round pick is questionable to participate in minicamp. Offensive lineman Nico Siragusa also had an operation this offseason. The 2017 fourth-round pick missed all of last season because of ACL, MCL and PCL tears and required an additional knee surgery this year. Zreibec reports the goal for him is a training camp return. As for Alex Lewis, Baltimore’s projected guard starter opposite Marshal Yanda, he’s fully recovered from the shoulder injury that nixed all of his 2017 season, Zreibec notes.
RG3 Discusses Ravens' Decision To Select Jackson
- The Ravens added quarterback Robert Griffin III earlier this offseason, and they subsequently drafted signal-caller Lamar Jackson. While the rookie will surely provide the 28-year-old with some competition for backup reps, Griffin told Mike Jones of USA Today that the draft selection wasn’t a slight at himself or Joe Flacco. “When they drafted Lamar, I didn’t look at it as a shot at me or a shot at Joe,” Griffin said. “It was ‘OK, Lamar is coming in here, and it’s our job to help him learn the offense and help him compete.’ So, for me, my job is to show them that I’m an asset to the team and not a detriment. … One (reporter) asked me if I was trying to showcase for other teams. No, my focus is, ‘I’m a Baltimore Raven. I’m showcasing to them that this is where I’m supposed to be.’ ”
[SOURCE LINK]
Packers Attempted To Hire Ravens Scout
- New Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst attempted to hire Ravens scout Milt Hendrickson as his assistant GM earlier this year, but Baltimore and GM Ozzie Newsome denied the request, as Bob McGinn of BobMcGinnFootball.com reports (Twitter link). Hendrickson has been with the Ravens since 2006, writes Zach Kruse of PackersWire.com, who adds Hendrickson worked alongside Gutekunst at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Hendrickson still lives in La Crosse, per McGinn, and could join the Packers’ staff in 2019.
Poll: Which Team Best Addressed QB Spot This Offseason?
This turned out to be an important year for quarterback acquisitions. Many teams’ short- and long-term futures will depend heavily on the players they added over the past two months.
A fourth of the NFL made major investments in outside talent at the quarterback position this offseason. Which team did you think is in the best position after all the dominoes fell?
Three teams acquired their unquestioned starters via trade or free agency. The Redskins’ trade for Alex Smith ensured they were not going to pick a quarterback in the draft. As did the Vikings’ subsequent Kirk Cousins agreement. The Broncos entered the draft as a borderline QB destination, but John Elway valued Bradley Chubb more than Josh Allen or Josh Rosen, eschewing a Bills offer that would have given his team extra first- and second-round picks. So, Case Keenum is going to be Denver’s starter.
Four of the five teams that used first-round picks on quarterbacks made sure to add bridge-type solutions, with the Browns moving first to get Tyrod Taylor. The Jets and Cardinals then respectively proceeded to bring in Josh McCown, Teddy Bridgewater, Sam Bradford and Mike Glennon. And the Bills made the final stopgap addition in A.J. McCarron. But these players, for the most part, are 2018 placeholders — at best.
Was Baker Mayfield worth the No. 1 overall pick? Or did the Browns make what could turn out to be the costliest of their spree of modern quarterback misjudgments last month? Several Cleveland executives independently rated Mayfield as the draft’s premier passer, going against the grain of the many teams that viewed Sam Darnold as this year’s top passing prospect. The Jets appear to have appreciated this bold move, and Darnold is almost certainly going to see extensive time in 2018. PFR readers believe he will.
The Bills worked the phones relentlessly in an effort to install Allen behind McCarron, and the Cardinals reportedly had the Wyoming prodigy rated as their top QB as well. But Allen could need extensive seasoning, and as of now, a returning playoff team has a fifth-year player with 133 career pass attempts set to open the season and possibly close it as the starter.
Conversely, the player the Cardinals invested in was tabbed by many draft experts as the readiest pro. And Bradford being in front of Rosen for 16 games may be asking a lot from the injury-prone veteran. The Ravens are already planning Jackson packages, and although the player whom some teams wanted to work out as a wide receiver may need a season to develop, this draft’s most dominant college QB resides in Baltimore behind Joe Flacco.
Armed with one of the league’s most talented rosters, Minnesota had the most obvious case to pursue a veteran. And the Vikings made history by authorizing a $28MM-AAV fully guaranteed deal for the soon-to-be 30-year-old Cousins, who may be the safest option among all of these players. But he’s now the league’s second-highest-paid passer and tethered to the Vikings through 2020. Smith is coming off his best NFL season, but his Chiefs teams disappointed in two home playoff opportunities. Washington could also be much further away from contention than Minnesota, and the Redskins have now brought in quarterback who for all the stability he offers is four years older.
It’s debatable the Broncos’ contention window could still be open, with many of their core Super Bowl 50 performers still on the team and having played the past two seasons without much help at quarterback. But a 5-11 team armed with only its second top-five pick since 1992 passing on two coveted QB prospects to pursue the 30-year-old Keenum, a late-blooming talent or a player who benefited from better circumstances, could also be classified as a bold choice as Rosen and Allen’s careers unfold. The Broncos only committed to Keenum for two years and are paying Football Outsiders’ No. 4 2017 DYAR passer $10MM less per year than Cousins commanded.
So, with all things considered, which of these franchises is best set up after this offseason? Did one of the teams that spent a first-round pick on a QB ensure a decade and then some of stability and promise? Or did the teams that went strictly for vets get this right? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section!
Crockett Gillmore Had Offseason Surgery
Free agent tight end-turned-offensive lineman Crockett Gillmore is not only attempting to work through a position switch, but recovering from offseason surgery, as Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun reports. Gillmore, who underwent an August procedure to repair a torn MCL, also had another knee operation done at some point earlier this year.
Gillmore, 26, spent the first four years of his career as a tight end for the Ravens, but multiple injuries repeatedly kept him off the field. After posting a career-best season in 2015 (33 receptions, 412 yards, four touchdowns), Gillmore managed only seven games in 2016 before going down with the aforementioned MCL injury.
As Zrebiec has indicated at various points this offseason, Baltimore still has interest in re-signing Gillmore, who has been on the open market since March. The Ravens are largely set across their offensive line after re-signing James Hurst and using a third-round pick on Orlando Brown, but the club could still have room for Gillmore as a reserve. Baltimore, theoretically, should have the most recent and accurate information regarding Gillmore’s health.
Whether any other team will be willing to consider Gillmore is unclear. Clearly, his injury history will limit his overall market and earning capacity, at least in the near term. But Gillmore’s positional change is the more intriguing matter at hand, and just how many clubs are open to signing him as an offensive lineman is an open question.
Draft Signings: Patriots, Ravens, Raiders
Here’s a look at today’s non-first round draft signings:
- The Patriots signed second-round cornerback Duke Dawson. The Pats moved around quite a bit on draft weekend, including a trade up fro No. 63 to No. 56 to select Dawson. As shown on Roster Resource, the Florida product figures to be one of the team’s primary backups to starters Jonathan Jones and Stephon Gilmore, along with veteran Jason McCourty. Dawson’s deal is worth $4.7MM over four years, as dictated by his draft slot.
- The Ravens signed third-round tackle Orlando Brown. Per the terms of his slot, Brown will receive a four-year, $3.491MM deal. Tight end Mark Andrews, who was Brown’s teammate at Oklahoma and also selected in the third round, has also inked his deal. As of this writing, the Ravens have just two unsigned picks in first round selections Hayden Hurst and Lamar Jackson.
- The Raiders signed two draft picks today: Michigan defensive tackle Maurice Hurst (fifth round) and Oklahoma State wide receiver Marcell Ateman (seventh). Five of their nine picks now under contract, as shown on PFR’s tracker. From a talent perspective, Hurst was viewed as one of the top interior defensive linemen in the draft, but heart issues caused him to fall. The Michigan product will join fellow rookie Arden Key on the defensive line, giving the Raiders a double dose of young boom-or-bust talent.
Bryant: No Regrets On Turning Down Ravens
After being released by the Cowboys, wide receiver Dez Bryant turned down a reported three-year deal worth roughly $21MM from the Ravens, choosing instead to wait for a similarly lucrative one-year offer. So far, that offer hasn’t come through, but Bryant claims that he doesn’t regret that decision “one bit” (Twitter link). 
Bryant may not see it this way, but it sure looks like he missed the boat on his best possible deal. While the Ravens were willing to give him an average annual value of $7MM to match free agent acquisition Michael Crabtree, many teams are unwilling to consider him for even the league minimum.
It’s anyone’s guess as to where Bryant will land at this point in the offseason. As recently noted by our own Dallas Robinson, the Cardinals, Packers, Patriots, Redskins, and Seahawks would all make varying degrees of sense for the multiple time Pro Bowler. However, we’ve heard no real news of Bryant being connected to any club since his talks with the Ravens and the Packers are not engaged with him at this time.
Last year, Bryant recorded just 838 yards and six touchdowns off of 69 catches, a far cry from his average of 91 catches for 1,312 yards and 14 touchdowns from 2012-14. His dip in production and perceived locker room issues have been serious barriers towards his pursuit of a platform contract, but he says that he will suit up for a team no matter what.
“No, I’m not retiring,” Bryant wrote on Twitter. “For the record, me not being signed to a team yet has a lot to do with my personal decisions. This media [sic] is a joke.”
Ravens’ Terrell Suggs To Play Beyond ’18
Jason Witten, one of the standout talents to come from the 2003 NFL Draft, retired this spring in order to jumpstart his career in broadcasting. Around the same time, cornerback Terence Newman announced that his one-year contract with the Vikings will be his last. Meanwhile, Terrell Suggs says retirement can wait. 
“I don’t plan on going nowhere,” Suggs said before adding that he plans to play for multiple seasons in a Ravens uniform.
Suggs will turn 36 in October, but is coming off of a Pro Bowl season in which he recorded eleven sacks, four forced fumbles, and graded out as one of the 20 best edge rushers in the league, per Pro Football Focus. That’s not too shabby for an old guy in the NFL.
“To be totally honest with you, I don’t see my peak in my near future,” Suggs said. “The answer to your question is yes. [Joe Flacco and I] definitely going to be two major, key parts of the leadership on this team. We also have other leaders, but from an offensive and defensive standpoint, absolutely. We take that very seriously. We take pride in that. We’re looking forward to doing some special things this year. I’ve said this before: It’s a trip to get to do it all again. I love playing ball. I love being Sizzle. When the time comes for me to just be a full-time dad, a full-time actor, writer, director, producer, I will do all that. But right now, it’s flock. Go flock, Ravens nation.”
Suggs has one season left on his deal with the Ravens, so the two sides will have to hammer out a new contract in order to see his plan through. He’ll carry a cap number of $6.95MM in 2018 as he rounds out his four-year, $20MM deal.