John Harbaugh: Ravens ‘200 percent’ committed to Lamar Jackson

Lamar Jackson is currently not under contract for 2023. The Baltimore Ravens expect to change that soon.

That was the message coach John Harbaugh and general manager Eric DeCosta made crystal clear Thursday in their end-of-season news conference.

“One hundred percent, you know, 200 percent,” Harbaugh said when asked if Jackson was still considered the franchise cornerstone. “There’s no question about it. Lamar Jackson is our quarterback. … Every thing we’ve done in terms of building our offense and building our team … is based on this incredible young man and his talent and his ability and his competitiveness. …

“He’s an incredible competitor. All he wants to do is win at everything he does … and that’s the kind of guys we want to build this team around — guys that love football and guys that love to compete.

“Eric wants him here, I want him here, [owner] Steve [Bisciotti] wants him here, and Lamar wants to be here. It’s gonna work out.”

The two biggest questions now are when and in what fashion. DeCosta reiterated the club is hoping to carve out a long-term deal with Jackson while planning to use the franchise tag as a placeholder.

“We’re excited to start up negotiations again with Lamar Jackson,” DeCosta said. “It certainly takes two to tango, but I think Lamar and I have a great relationship. … We spent some time together today as a matter of fact. We’ve spoken throughout the season multiple times. These negotiations, they all happen differently. … We’ll try to hammer out a deal, and hopefully we can get to that point.”

While DeCosta again declined to offer any details of the negotiation, it is widely speculated the 26-year-old former league MVP is only interested in a fully guaranteed deal. He and the organization failed to agree on an extension before the regular season began in September 2022 after Jackson, who does not have an agent and has had his mother represent him in contract talks, reportedly refused a $250 million deal with $133 million guaranteed.

Though the deal offered him more max money than Kyler Murray ($230.5 million, $160 million guaranteed) and Russell Wilson ($245 million, $165 million guaranteed), Jackson has been reportedly interested in only a fully guaranteed contract such as Deshaun Watson‘s deal with the Cleveland Browns ($230 million).

DeCosta did acknowledge he has been weighing “every day” whether to use the exclusive or non-exclusive tag on Jackson. The latter would count about $30 million to $35 million against the cap but also allow Jackson to negotiate separate deals with other teams. The exclusive tag is projected to cost $45 million but gives the Ravens full control over his services in 2023.

DeCosta didn’t want to entertain discussion about possibly trading Jackson, who would likely become the most coveted player on the market if made available.

“Our focus right now is really to get a long-term deal done,” DeCosta said. “That’s our singular focus at this point. It’s gonna to take some time. It’s gonna take some effort. It’s gonna take great communication — give and take — but I’m confident that we’ll be on the right path to get that done.”

“We’ve done a lot of contracts. I think we’ve done the second-most extensions in the league over the last four years. We know what can happen. We try to be creative and strategic. … We still have a chance.”

Jackson’s six-game absence from the lineup sank Baltimore’s chances in the postseason. The Ravens went 2-3 without Jackson to close out the regular season, losing the AFC North lead in the process. A day after falling to the Bengals in the wild-card round, Jackson posted a cryptic message on Instagram about being appreciative “when you have something good.”

Jackson has remained active on social media while being sidelined. Ahead of last week’s playoff game, he curiously provided his own update on his game status, sharing that his “knee remains unstable” but that he is “still in good spirits” as he continues his rehab.

On Thursday, Baltimore announced it had parted ways with four-year offensive coordinator Greg Roman.

Jackson finished the 2022 season — the fifth and final year of his rookie deal — having completed 62.3% of his passes for 2,242 yards, 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 12 games. He also ran for 764 yards and three touchdowns on 112 carries — his 6.8 yards per carry ranked second in the NFL.

Since his 2018 arrival in Baltimore, Jackson has led the club to four postseason berths but only one win.

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