It's no secret to anyone that the ongoing contract discussions between the Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson have not gone well. It's unusual to see a franchise Quarterback play on his 5th year of their rookie deal without a contract extension in place.
Now both Jackson and the Ravens find themselves at a crossroads.
Jackson has now missed the past 3 games for the Ravens and will almost certainly be missing a fourth straight, after leaving the game vs the Denver Broncos on December 4th with a knee injury.
Now reports have circulated that Jackson has not been coming to the facility for treatments and has missed many days. This also aligns with reports that Jackson rarely showed up for treatments last year when he dealt with an ankle injury.
This report has been refuted since, with Mike Preston, a reporter for the Baltimore Sun clarifying that Jackson has been going to treatments and even saying his attendance has been perfect. What makes this interesting is one of the initial reports stating Jackson was not attending his treatments was made in a Q&A article by Preston himself.
On Wednesday, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh did not elaborate on Jackson’s status, adding even more questions about what is going on. By Friday, Harbaugh said that Jackson was progressing well along with other players Marcus Peters and Calais Campbell.
Many expected Jackson to be back at practice by now, but instead he is still sidelined.
This injury brings even more questions into the status of the Ravens’ and Jackson’s long term future together.
Is this a sign that the two parties may be moving on?
It goes without doubt that Lamar Jackson is loved in Baltimore, not only in the city but in the organization as well. Jackson helped turn around declining attendance when he took over the starting qb job in 2018.
For Jackson it appears he knows his worth, after Deshaun Watson was given over 230 million dollars guaranteed coming off legal issues and a major knee injury, many would wonder why Jackson, a former unanimous MVP, would expect anything less.
Presently, there are still questions. There have been other reported issues such as lack of focus in meetings and diet issues that have been associated with Jackson. Some would be led to wonder what the commitment level is between the two parties, as the Ravens themselves haven't given out a long term deal.
What we do know is that Lamar Jackson is a winner and the Baltimore Ravens are a better team with him on the field.
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