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Peter King: 'No Indication' Lamar Jackson Will Skip Ravens' Training Camp or Season
June 6, 2022
Lamar Jackson has been absent from Baltimore Ravens facilities this offseason as contract extension negotiations stall, but there is reportedly no concern he will hold out of mandatory workouts.
Peter King of NBC Sports wrote there is "no indication" Jackson has any plans of skipping out on training camp or the 2022 season.
The 2019 NFL MVP is set to play next season under the fifth-year option of his rookie contract, which will pay him $23 million. There has been shockingly little momentum in negotiations despite both sides seeming to want Jackson in Baltimore for the long term.
“Nothing’s really changed on that front,” general manager Eric DeCosta told reporters in April. “I’m really excited because we’re excited about Lamar. He’s been working quite a bit out in California, down in Florida. We are getting great reports. We talk to him all the time, check in with him all the time. Talk to other players. And I believe—and I think coach feels this way—that we are really poised to have a great year on offense.”
Jackson does not have an agent and represents himself, which can add a monkey wrench into negotiations. Figuring out a rookie-scale contract can pretty easily be done without an agent given the slotting structure the NFL has in place, but the type of deal Jackson is set to command on his second contract likely could use a professional negotiator to help things along.
It also does not help matters that the Ravens seemingly alienated Jackson this offseason by trading top receiver Marquise Brown to the Arizona Cardinals. Baltimore will go into next season relying heavily on second-year wideout Rashod Bateman and a group of wideouts that is otherwise extremely unproven.
With Jackson coming off an injury-riddled and mistake-prone 2021 campaign, losing his favorite target probably isn't the best way to increase his comfort level. That said, it would be reasonable for people advising Jackson to get a deal in place for that reason alone. He plays a style of football that is unique to himself and very hard on his body on a week-to-week basis; any major injury next season could give the Ravens major leverage in contract talks or force Jackson into playing on the franchise tag in 2023.
