Lamar Jackson Trade Rumors: Multiple Teams Interested, Unlikely to Submit Offer Sheet

There are two routes for Lamar Jackson to leave the Baltimore Ravens at this point: signing an offer sheet with another team that the Ravens don't match or agreeing to a sign-and-trade deal with another team.

The latter option may be the more realistic one at this point. According to ESPN's Dan Graziano, "there are teams interested in pursuing a potential Jackson trade if he decides he wants out of Baltimore, but I don't know that you'll see anyone submit a formal offer sheet that puts two first-round draft picks at risk if the Ravens don't match."

Graziano believes teams would rather go a conventional trade route than agree on an offer sheet and face the possibility of losing two first-round picks if the Ravens didn't match, though he also noted that such a scenario would require Jackson to agree to sign his franchise tender.

Much of the buzz surrounding the situation has been the teams that reportedly aren't interested in signing Jackson to an offer sheet:

And that hasn't sat right with a number of people, including former players, who find themselves confounded by a seeming lack of interest in a former MVP:

Now, it's possible teams don't want to negotiate an offer sheet with Jackson and go through that process rather than prioritizing other needs on their roster, believing the Ravens simply would match any offer.

That appears to be Baltimore's strategy here: to allow the market to dictate Jackson's future earnings. Ostensibly the hope is Jackson won't get the type of deal he wants on the market and either settle for a long-term extension that is more palatable to the Ravens, or he'll sign an offer sheet they are comfortable matching.

But there are potentially more nefarious workings at play if the reporting that Jackson is seeking a fully guaranteed deal are true:

The implication is that owners are colluding to drive Jackson's price down and prevent a player from getting a fully guaranteed deal. That would be incredibly hard to prove, and it only takes one team going all-in on Jackson to end that talk. It's possible teams simply don't want to risk putting time and resources into an offer that Baltimore is just waiting around to match.

That would make seeking a sign-and-trade more logical for some teams. It certainly makes more sense than a number of quarterback-needy teams simply having no interest in one of the most dynamic players in football.