Two years ago, after a contentious, drawn out negotiation, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens agreed to a record-setting $260 million extension. But, entering the 2025 season, Jackson has dropped to the 10th highest-paid player in the league. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott currently holds the title of highest-paid player with an average annual value (AAV) of $60 million. Following another outstanding season in 2024, Anthony Holzman-Escareno of NFL.com believes that Jackson is “poised to reset” the market.
Jackson ‘Poised to Reset’ Market with Next Long-Term Extension
Back in March 2023, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens seemed stuck at a standstill during contract negotiations. Jackson was reportedly looking for an extension similar to Deshaun Watson’s fully-guaranteed 5-year, $230 million deal. But, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti expressed his dismay with Watson’s deal.
According to NFL Network‘s Media Insider Ian Rapoport, Bisciotti questioned the decision to fully guarantee Watson’s extension and told a small group of reporters that Watson’s extension would likely impact future negotiations.
“I don’t know that [Watson] should’ve been the first guy to get a fully guaranteed contract,” said Bisciotti, according to Rapoport. “To me, that’s something that is groundbreaking, and it’ll make negotiations harder with others.”
Eventually, Jackson and the Ravens were able to settle on a 5-year, $260 million contract with $185 million guaranteed. That set the record for the largest contract in NFL history, based on AAV. In the two years since, there have been nine quarterbacks who have signed larger deals, including the current leader in the clubhouse, Dak Prescott. Prescott signed the record-setting, 4-year, $240 million deal just hours before the Cowboys kicked off their 2024 season.
“Odds are Jackson will be the quarterback to dethrone Dak Prescott ($60 million APY) on the top of the NFL salary scale,” writes Anthony Holzman-Escareno of NFL.com. “His first long-term deal made him the highest-paid player in NFL history at the time of its signing. His next one will do the same again.”
One major factor will be Lamar Jackson’s cap hits for 2026 and 2027. Jackson’s cap hit, which is the amount of money from a player’s contract that counts against the salary cap, will be $74.5 million for both 2026 and 2027, according to Spotrac. That ranks as the third-highest in the league for 2026 and the highest in 2027. For context, the $74.5 million for 2026 would account for over 24% of the team’s cap space that year. Jackson is a 2-time MVP, 3-time First-Team All-Pro in his first six seasons as a full-time starter, but nearly a quarter of your cap space on one player is simply unfeasible in today’s game.
However, as the best dual-threat quarterback in league history, Lamar Jackson should be able to set his price. Thanks to a flurry of quarterback extensions since 2023, Jackson is “poised to reset” the market at his position again.
Lamar and Ravens in ‘Introductory Stage’ of Extension Talks
Yesterday, Julia Stumbaugh of Bleacher Report reported that the Ravens are “in the ‘introductory stage’ of extension talks” with Jackson.
“We’ve had some conversations, before the draft, after the draft, in person last week,” DeCosta said during Wednesday’s BMore Baseball Podcast, according to Stumbaugh. “I think we’re in the introductory stage of looking at what an extension might look like.”
DeCosta stressed that the Ravens will have several key extensions coming up over the next few years. That always poses a challenge for a team looking to retain marquee talent. That’s certainly not unique to the Ravens or even to the NFL. Any sport with a salary cap requires some clever math and team-friendly deals to create sustainable, long-term success.
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh understands that Jackson will likely be poised to reset the market once again. According to Stumbaugh, Harbaugh has been up front with reporters since the league’s annual meeting from March 30-April 2. Reporters asked about the difficulty of placing a value on Jackson, according to Stumbaugh.
“The value is the top,” Harbaugh said. “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.”
If Lamar can perform at an MVP level once again in 2025, there should be no doubt about making him the highest-paid player in the league.
