When the Baltimore Ravens acquired star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., many took it as a sign that quarterback Lamar Jackson remaining with the franchise was a sure thing.
As it turns out, however, that does not seem to be the case. According to a recent report, there is still no certainty that Jackson will play for the Ravens while on the franchise tag.
Instead of the Beckham signing being seen as a sign that he and Jackson will play together in Baltimore this season, it instead seems like the Ravens were simply trying to entice Jackson to consider playing for the team while on the franchise tag.
“The Ravens do remain hopeful that the relationship with Lamar Jackson can thaw out a little bit,” Jeremy Fowler said during a recent television appearance. “The Odell Beckham signing can be a peace offering. Because this is a move Lamar Jackson himself would want. The Ravens are saying, ‘Hey, we value how you feel about personnel and how you feel about the offense. And we care what you think. We’re listening.'”
As fans will remember, Jackson announced that he had requested a trade from the team back in March. According to Jackson himself, the reason for the trade request was because the team had not yet showed a willingness to meet his perceived value.
According to Fowler, there is still a “huge gulf” between what Jackson wants and what the Ravens seem willing to pay him.
“There still remains a huge gulf in guaranteed money on the contract,” Fowler said. “I’m told Lamar Jackson has great resolve in his contractual situation. He’s not just going to take any old deal. He wants what he wants. And there’s still no certainty, as of right now, he’d play on the franchise tag.”
Certainly, this is not the kind of news that Ravens fans want to hear. Still, the fact that the Ravens did decide to invest real money into a star receiver could be seen as a sign that they will eventually cow to Jackson’s financial desires.
The 2023 NFL offseason is still very young, and it seems clear that this saga is far from over.
Now that it is known that Jackson has not yet committed to playing for the Ravens on the tag this season, it will be interesting to see if the team shows any renewed intent in offering him a massive deal.
