Lamar Jackson 'appears ready' to make big decision

A shocking report from August suggested that New York Jets owner Woody Johnson could move on from head coach Aaron Glenn and then look to pair former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin with Baltimore Ravens star quarterback Lamar Jackson. 

A Monday update insisted that Johnson is not yet "looking into potential replacements for Glenn," but Jackson's uncertain future nevertheless remains the biggest story hovering over the Ravens. Jackson's current contract prevents the Ravens from trading him without his permission or retaining his rights via the franchise tag after the 2027 season, and it sounds like he is willing to remain on that deal through early next year.

Lamar Jackson "appears ready" to do this amid uncertainty

"The league sentiment is this," ESPN's Jeremy Fowler shared. "Jackson has massive leverage and appears ready to use it, which means the chances of him playing out 2026 without an extension could grow by the day. He is owed $52M in cash in each of the next two seasons with an $84.3M cap hit in 2027, which might as well be a poison pill. He has a no-franchise-tag provision and a no-trade clause. If he wants to entertain a new home outside of Baltimore in future years, he has full control of where it is -- especially if he has another banner season."

Previous stories noted that Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears, Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders, Drake Maye of the New England Patriots and Bo Nix of the Denver Broncos could all sign extensions next offseason that would impact the quarterback market. While Jackson allegedly may want $275M in fully guaranteed money to sign an extension this summer, his future deal could become more expensive next spring. 

He also could engineer a trade to a team of his choosing next summer if he and the Ravens are far apart in contract talks at that time. 

Lamar Jackson could make contract history in 2027

"He can sit tight and let the market do the work for him next offseason, when several star quarterbacks from the 2024 draft class will be eligible for extensions," Fowler added. "Perhaps then Jackson will become the NFL's first player to earn $70M per year."

As much as the Ravens may "want" to lock Jackson down, it appears he is ready to show what he can do under first-year Baltimore head coach Jesse Minter and first-year offensive coordinator Declan Doyle. In short, the Ravens may ultimately regret not extending Jackson's contract before the 2025 season came to an end.