Lamar Jackson is still looking for a long-term contract after the Ravens placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on him during the 2023 NFL offseason.
Thus far, teams across the NFL haven't yet shown an interest in pursuing the 2019 MVP.
It appears, however, that one party is trying to help Jackson change that.
Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio reports that a representative for Jackson has been communicating with teams "in an effort to spark negotiations aimed at a possible offer sheet."
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This representative has been telling teams two things to make that happen. First, the quarterback is not, in fact, looking for a fully guaranteed contract as most reports have indicated.
That said, as Florio noted in his report, it will still cost a pretty penny in guarantees to land Jackson; so, teams may not view this as much of a capitulation on the quarterback's end.
Some regard this as a possible exercise in semantics, with Jackson still wanting a very significant amount fully guaranteed — up to $200 million or more — with one more more non-guaranteed years on the back end.
Elsewhere, and perhaps more importantly, the representative is reportedly saying that Jackson "is ready to move on from the Ravens."
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That doesn't necessarily guarantee that Jackson will leave Baltimore. The Ravens have leverage in contract negotiations with him, as they can still match any offer sheet that he signs.
But if Jackson threatens to hold out and not sign the franchise tag, Baltimore could find itself in an unfavorable position. And at that point, the Ravens could be forced to consider offloading Jackson for what would surely be a package rich in draft assets.
All that's to say that a lot remains up in the air with Jackson; and the longer he remains pseudo-available, the murkier his future becomes. After all, the quarterback market has largely settled — minus the potential Aaron Rodgers to the Jets trade for which the NFL world is waiting. So, if Jackson doesn't land back in Baltimore, it's worth wondering where exactly he could land.
Perhaps Jackson's representative will be able to make some headway in negotiations and get at least one team to bite on a potential offer sheet. However, it's worth noting that the representative is "not certified by the NFL Players Association," per Florio.
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As such, the efforts of this individual could have a chilling effect on teams worried about violating the NFL's free agency protocols. This was recently seen when the mysterious Saint Omni was reaching out to teams regarding Roquan Smith while he was still under contract with the Bears last offseason.
At that time, the NFL sent a memo discouraging teams from talking to Omni and reminding them of how negotiations are supposed to proceed.
"Player Contracts may only be negotiated with the player, if he is acting on his own behalf, or with the player’s NFLPA certified agent," the NFL wrote, per ESPN's Courtney Cronin.
It will be interesting to see if the NFL does something similar in regard to these rumors. Either way, it doesn't look like we are much closer to reaching the end of the Lamar Jackson saga.