Teammate shares big revelation about Ravens' Lamar Jackson amid contract rumors, uncertainty

Questions about the long-term future of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson will only grow louder unless he signs a contract extension with the club at some point this summer. 

During a recent appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Ravens defensive end Calais Campbell suggested that Jackson was everything and more his teammates needed him to be during springtime workouts. 

Lamar Jackson "right where he needs to be" heading into the summer

"With Lamar, you can see it," Campbell explained, per James Dudko of Heavy. "Even when he breaks out of the huddle, the stuff he says, you can tell he’s just so much more mature and is developed. He was always wise beyond his years when he was younger, but seeing in just a few years the growth and development … he’s right where he needs to be." 

Earlier this week, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic noted that Jackson "set the tone for his teammates by being a regular for the voluntary workouts, which hasn’t always been the case." Zrebiec seems to think that's a good sign as it pertains to Jackson and the Ravens possibly inking a contract extension before the 2026 season gets underway.

However, others continue to sound alarms about the situation because Jackson's existing contract prevents the Ravens from trading him without his consent or retaining his rights for 2028 via the franchise tag. It's possible, and maybe even likely, that Jackson wants to become the league's new highest-paid player via his next deal. 

Lamar Jackson is "going to continue to get better as a leader" with the Ravens

According to Dudko, Campbell said that Jackson is "going to continue to get better as a leader, and continue to get better as the person that we look to in the biggest moments." 

"He’s the guy that’s going to lead us to where we want to go," Campbell added about Jackson. 

Jackson has thus far given no indication that he plans to submit a trade request, as he did in 2023 before he signed a five-year deal reportedly worth up to $260M with $185M guaranteed. That said, it's unclear if he and the Ravens are close to coming to terms on a new extension in the closing days of spring.