Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said the team is in the "introductory stage" of extension talks with quarterback Lamar Jackson. "We've had some conversations, before the draft, after the draft, in person last week," DeCosta said at the 7:45 mark of Wednesday's BMore Baseball Podcast. "I think we're in the introductory stage of looking at what an extension might look like."
DeCosta continued: "… As we look out over the next two, three, four, five years, we're trying to keep as many good players as we can. We've got some guys that we feel like have the chance to really be prolific players for us, that can be here a long time. We're trying to get as many of those guys signed up as possible.
"That's a big challenge, and Lamar's certainly a big part of that." Jackson is currently signed through the 2027 season. According to Spotrac, renegotiating his deal will be key to helping the Ravens lower his projected cap hits of $74.5 million for the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
The Ravens previously signed Jackson to a five-year extension in 2023. The deal was worth $260 million and included $185 million in guaranteed money, according to ESPN's Jamison Hensley. That made Jackson the NFL's highest-paid player at the time with an average annual value of $52 million.
Two years later, that average salary ranks behind nine other quarterbacks. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is set to enter the 2025 season with the highest AAV at $60 million per season, while Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen leads the NFL with a record $250 million in guaranteed money. Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said in March that Jackson's next contract could once again make him the highest-paid player in the sport.
"The value is the top," Harbaugh told reporters when asked during the league's annual meetings if it was difficult to place a value on Jackson. "When the market's paid, he's going to be the highest-paid player in football, just like he was last time. "I think every contract he signs, probably until he decides to hang up his cleats, he's going to be that guy."
Jackson followed up his 2023 MVP season by finishing as runner-up for the award in 2024. He recorded a career-high 4,172 passing yards during the campaign while throwing 41 touchdowns to only four interceptions. The Ravens already signed star running back Derrick Henry to a two-year extension, which Schefter reported is a two-year, $30 million deal with $25 million guaranteed.
