Colts' Irsay on Lamar Jackson Rumors: Fully Guaranteed Contracts Aren't Good for NFL

The Indianapolis Colts have emerged as a potential landing spot for Lamar Jackson in the wake of the quarterback's trade request, but owner Jim Irsay doesn't sound willing to give out a fully guaranteed contract to make it happen.

Speaking to reporters at the NFL owners meetings, Irsay said he doesn't "believe fully guaranteed contracts would be good for our game at all" and used historical precedent as his main point:

"I've seen what it's done to other sports leagues and I just don't think that it's a positive … I line up more with the old-school owners, the Rooneys, the Maras, the Halases. Everyone has to change with the times, that sort of thing. Our game is great and it's great for a number of reasons, but I don't think guaranteed contracts make our game greater, I think it makes it worse."

Kirk Cousins' first fully guaranteed deal (three years, $84 million) with the Minnesota Vikings in 2018 was seen as the potential start of a change in how contracts are structured, at least for quarterbacks because of how valuable the position is to teams.

Rather than representing a sea change, though, Cousins' deal and subsequent extensions with the Vikings have been more of an outlier than par for the course.

It wasn't until the Cleveland Browns signed Deshaun Watson to a five-year, $230 million deal in March 2022 that another quarterback got a fully guaranteed contract.

That was a unique circumstance because Watson's previous contract with the Houston Texans included a full no-trade clause, allowing him to dictate where he would play. The 27-year-old was reportedly considering the Browns, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers in a trade last offseason.

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported on March 17 that Cleveland was informed it was out of the running for Watson. The next day, when the record-breaking contract was put on the table, Watson was traded to the Browns.

Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti told reporters at last year's league meetings he didn't like seeing Watson sign a fully guaranteed deal.

"I'm trying to answer that when I had a reaction to it. And it's like, 'Damn, I wish they hadn't guaranteed the whole contract,'" Bisciotti said Tuesday at the NFL league meetings. "I don't know that he should've been the first guy to get a fully guaranteed contract. To me, that's something that is groundbreaking, and it'll make negotiations harder with others."

In November, The Athletic's Kalyn Kahler reported the NFLPA filed a claim alleging that all 32 clubs and the league have colluded to prevent teams from offering fully guaranteed contracts.

Earlier this month, ESPN's Jamison Hensley reported Jackson wants a fully guaranteed deal similar to the one Watson got from the Browns, but the Ravens are reluctant to offer it because they consider Watson's deal "more of an outlier than a precedent."

Colts general manager Chris Ballard told reporters on Monday the team would at least look into acquiring Jackson. It's unclear what their draft board looks like, but it's a safe bet at least two of the top quarterbacks in the 2023 class will be off the board when they make their first pick at No. 4 with the Carolina Panthers picking first overall and Houston Texans picking at two.

The Ravens do have the ability to retain Jackson, either by signing him to an extension or matching any potential offer sheet he might receive after they used the nonexclusive franchise tag to prevent him from becoming a true free agent.

Irsay's comments likely echo what many other owners feel about player contracts in the NFL. That may not prevent the Colts from being able to acquire the 26-year-old former MVP, but it might decrease their chances of making it happen if they want to go in that direction.