It took months, but Lamar Jackson has officially and finally signed his contract extension with the Baltimore Ravens.
The Ravens played the long game and let the market play itself out, even though Jackson wasn’t exactly thrilled by that approach.
The Louisville product openly claimed that he formally requested a trade in early March, yet GM Eric DeCosta never even entertained the thought of moving on without his franchise quarterback.
Done. Deal. pic.twitter.com/Ptr1LFovPb
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) May 4, 2023
The Ravens always planned to have Jackson back.
They proved it by making a huge financial investment and taking a chance on Odell Beckham Jr., outbidding his other suitors to make sure their franchise QB finally had a prime weapon in the passing game.
Even so, they sure made it seem like they were willing to just force Jackson to play under the non-exclusive franchise tag.
They could’ve matched every offer he got from another team or gotten draft compensation if he decided to leave, but the shocking lack of league-wide interest in Jackson gave them all the leverage in negotiations.
Still, Jackson never caved in and finally got the deal he was looking for.
Jackson has failed to finish either of the past couple of seasons with injuries and his style of play doesn’t exactly favor health.
Hopefully, he’ll be back to full strength and live up to that new massive deal in 2023.
NEXT: Lamar Jackson Makes His Thoughts Clear About Ravens Future
