The quarterback market in the NFL has gotten crazy over the last year or so, especially after the deals that have been given to men such as Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson after they changed teams last offseason.
Watson was traded to the Cleveland Browns in 2022, and right away, they gave him a fully guaranteed $230 million contract.
However, a number of other high-level signal-callers have gotten big contracts that aren’t fully guaranteed.
Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens reportedly has been demanding the type of fully guaranteed deal Watson got, and some doubt he will be able to find anything like that on the open market now that their non-exclusive franchise tag has been placed on him.
Former NFL star Richard Sherman said that because people such as Josh Allen and two-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes haven’t gotten fully guaranteed deals, perhaps Jackson won’t either.
.@RSherman_25 and @CalvinJohnsonJr speak how previous QB contracts have set the precedent on @LJ_Era8 not getting a fully guaranteed deal pic.twitter.com/vzadfWdwOu
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) March 24, 2023
Fans on Twitter pointed out that contracts that aren’t fully guaranteed allow teams to give such QBs plenty of help on both sides of the football.
Probably because Mahomes and Allen realize that once you take up too much of the cap they can’t keep enough talent around you and then you get all that money but either take a beating or have nobody to throw it to.
— Crypto BIACS (., .) (@CryptoNasty75) March 24, 2023
And can’t QBs take team friendly deals (aka PM/JA) & still get a nice paycheck. It allows team 2 to retain other top talent to be competitive. TB12 did it for years. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with what Lamar wants, but why are you criticizing others for their choices?
—Sully (@BlazedRabbit) March 24, 2023
These fans feel like Jackson is asking for too much.
Lamar is a great Qb, but what has he truly done, to turn down the first offer. He has been injured the last two seasons. Like I said…. He’s a great Qb but maybe also a little greedy.
— Ronald Medford (@medford_ronald) March 24, 2023
@RSherman_25 the issue is that @Lj_era8 refuses to get an agent. If he had an agent he would have a deal by now. I have been trying to hook him up with @A1Murph because I want this dude to get paid. He’s a top QB in the league, but on this issue he’s been way too stubborn.
—VT (@brownchubbybear) March 24, 2023
Jackson won the league MVP in 2019 after throwing for 3,127 yards and an NFL-high 36 touchdowns while also adding 1,206 yards and seven touchdowns himself on the ground.
He has always been one of the game’s best dual-threat QBs, but his numbers as a passer have fallen off ever since.
In 2022, he’s notched 2,242 passing yards and 17 passing touchdowns in 12 games while completing an anemic 62.3 percent of his passes.
By comparison, Watson is also a prime threat to gain yardage with his legs, but his passing numbers have only gotten better over time.
If Jackson comes to terms with another team on a contract, that team will have to compensate Baltimore with two first-round draft picks, which seems like a steep price to pay for a player with his particular skill set.
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