Lamar Jackson’s return lasted one snap. The argument over his next contract will run all winter.
The Ravens quarterback injured the thumb on his throwing hand on Baltimore’s first snap of Sunday’s 36-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills. He was placed on injured reserve, needs surgery, and head coach Jesse Minter would not rule out the injury ending his season. Injuries have cost him about 20 games over the past six seasons.
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That is the setting for Colin Cowherd’s verdict. On “The Herd,” the Fox Sports host paired Lamar Jackson with Kawhi Leonard, the two-time NBA Finals MVP currently out with swelling in his left knee, while discussing the “injury-prone” narrative being talked about by the media, with Nick Wright.
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“Nobody’s blaming Lamar for the injuries. I’m not blaming Kawhi for the injuries, but with both of them, there’s a lack of trust to the organizations they’ve played with. Both have a family member that’s kind of doing the business, and with both, you’re not sure if they’re going to play or practice. And I’m not saying it’s perfectly analogous, but I said this in the offseason. I’m like, guys, it’s noisy lack of trust, the blown leads. Like, I just can’t. I can’t write a $60M annual check, but I know he has a market. I’m not denying that. But what do you do with Lamar? Would you extend him?”
The comparison is about information, not talent: Jackson’s mother, Felicia Jones, advises him, and Leonard’s uncle, Dennis Robertson, fills the same role.
Kawhi Leonard was originally expected to miss 3 to 4 weeks, which would mean he could be out until late November. But after the team’s latest update, he could be back in a week. This is a similar situation to Jackson’s, only the Ravens star got injured on the first snap of his return.
Jackson carries a 2026 cap hit of $34.54 million after the March 2026 restructure, with his 2027 cap number rising to $84.49 million. An extension would likely push past $60 million per season. This raises the question for the organization: is Lamar Jackson the future, or can they gain more by moving the quarterback while he is nearing the end of his prime?
Why Lamar Jackson’s contract situation is getting worse
His $260 million extension, signed in 2023, runs through 2027, when his cap number climbs to $84.49 million.
Jackson was reluctant to discuss a long-term agreement in September, per ESPN, and Adam Schefter said Tuesday that a deal “hasn’t come close to being done,” calling the $83.4 million figure “untenable” and noting the no-trade and no-tag clauses give him “the power of an NBA player in the NFL.”
The football cost is visible. Baltimore is 7-13 without Jackson since 2018, per WBAL-TV. His legs are still the offense: he has been the league’s most heavily used running quarterback since he entered the league, and a backup who throws for 120 yards cannot replace that. The Ravens are in a spot where they have to make a move for a reliable quarterback, whether that comes at the expense of Jackson or a future draft pick.
General manager Eric DeCosta said on Sept. 2 that the Ravens “would love to get a deal done as soon as possible.” Asked Monday whether that was Jackson’s last game as a Raven, Minter said, “No.”
The bill comes due in March regardless.
Edited by Aman Kashyap
