Lamar Jackson Rumors: Patriots Won't Trade for Ravens QB Despite Meek Mill Text

The New England Patriots reportedly won't pursue Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson despite apparent interest from Jackson in going to New England.

According to Jeff Howe of The Athletic, a league source said the Patriots signing Jackson to an offer sheet or trading for him is "just not going to happen."

The report comes two days after Patriots owner Robert Kraft said he received a text message from rapper Meek Mill about Jackson wanting to play for the Patriots.

Per Ben Volin of the Boston Globe, Kraft said any move for Jackson would be "Bill's decision," in reference to head coach Bill Belichick.

On Monday, Jackson revealed in a series of tweets that he had asked the Ravens to trade him earlier this month. Instead, the organization placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on the superstar quarterback.

That means any other NFL team can sign Jackson to an offer sheet with the Ravens having the right to match. If the Ravens refuse to match, the team that signs Jackson would have to send two first-round picks to Baltimore.

The Ravens and Jackson are currently in a state of flux, and it could last through the NFL Draft in late April, as teams would perhaps prefer to not part with a 2023 first-round pick so close to draft night.

There are undoubtedly multiple teams in need of quarterback help across the league, but some are likely to address the situation early in the draft, such as the Carolina Panthers, Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts.

Others without high picks could possibly be interested in Jackson, but there hasn't been much indication publicly of who Jackson's suitors could be.

The Patriots would have made some sense as a landing spot since they have missed the playoffs in two of the past three years and have major question marks under center.

Mac Jones played well as a rookie after the Pats selected him 15th overall in the 2021 NFL draft, as he threw for 3,801 yards, 22 touchdowns and 13 interceptions en route to a playoff berth and Pro Bowl appearance.

He took a big step backward last season, though, going just 6-8 as a starter and throwing for 2,997 yards, 14 touchdowns and 11 picks.

Some of that could be chalked up to turmoil in the play-calling ranks, as both Matt Patricia and Joe Judge had a hand in running the offense despite having no previous play-calling experience on that side of the ball.

In an attempt to salvage Jones, the Patriots turned to Bill O'Brien, who was previously a Patriots offensive coordinator, as well as OC at Alabama, and head coach of the Houston Texans.

As for Jackson, he is coming off of back-to-back injury-plagued seasons, missing five games each in 2021 and 2022. That could have something to do with reluctance from the Ravens and other teams to make a long-term commitment contractually.

Jackson is a dynamic and at times dominant force when healthy, though, holding a 45-16 career regular-season record as a starter.

He is also a two-time Pro Bowler, and was both a first-team All-Pro and NFL MVP in 2019 when he threw a league-high 36 touchdown passes and rushed for a career-high 1,206 yards and seven scores.

Jackson is still just 26 years old and likely has plenty of good football in front of him, meaning he should land somewhere he is wanted eventually, although it apparently won't be in New England.