Baltimore Ravens: What will a Lamar Jackson contract extension look like?

Will the Baltimore Ravens make Lamar Jackson one of the highest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL when he signs a contract extension?

With every quarterback in the NFL receiving record-breaking contract extensions, the question is now who will be the next in line for a massive deal and if it’s Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson? Now approaching the fourth year of his rookie deal, it’s to be expected that negotiations will begin to ramp up within the next couple of months.

Among the other quarterbacks needing a new contract with Jackson are Cleveland Browns’ Baker Mayfield and Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen. They will all look to be getting similar contracts to that of Dak Prescott with the Dallas Cowboys that recently made him one of the highest-paid players in NFL history by signing a four-year, $160 million deal with $126 million guaranteed.

Unlike those aforementioned quarterbacks listed, however, Jackson is the only quarterback to have been awarded NFL MVP and did so in just his second year. If Prescott is receiving $40 million a season, who is to say that Jackson can’t receive an even higher paycheck?

What will a Lamar Jackson contract look like with the Baltimore Ravens?

What may set back his progress towards a new deal though is the fact that Lamar Jackson is self-represented as opposed to having an agent handle the negotiations. This could play as a setback as the front office may look to take advantage of the 24-year-old quarterback by holding back on how much they are willing to fork over. On the other hand, though, this has yet to be a problem for other players who have chosen the self-representation route, like cornerback Richard Sherman.

There is also a very significant factor regarding the young superstar that the Baltimore Ravens are going to seriously consider and it can be summarized in one word: longevity. Jackson is very young and very gifted when it comes to playing football. But the way in which he plays it may deter the organization from signing him to a Patrick Mahomes-level contract.

What we will likely see is a front-loaded contract for roughly four-to-five years to ensure that, in the worst-case scenario, the Ravens won’t end up with (another) Robert Griffin III.

It’s not particularly enticing from a management perspective when you see your franchise quarterback running the ball almost more often than he’s throwing it. Again, while Lamar Jackson is absolutely sensational when it comes to doing his thing on the field, it’s not sustainable in the long run.

Management knows that, eventually, he won’t be as mobile as he was in these years of his NFL career and his contract extension is going to reflect that. There is zero doubt that Lamar will get his money because he has 100 percent earned every cent that’s coming his way. However, because of his playstyle as a scrambler, it’s very unlikely that he’ll secure an extension for more than six years.