During the NFL offseason, there was a notable lack of pursuit for quarterback Lamar Jackson by several NFL teams. Despite the opportunity to negotiate with Jackson, many teams, including those considering Desmond Ridder, publicly expressed disinterest. This has prompted reactions from commentators who find it hard to believe that teams would pass on a talent like Jackson in favor of other options. Rich Eisen of the NFL Network clarified that Jackson was not a free agent and any team interested in signing him would have had to give up two first-round draft picks to the Baltimore Ravens, provided the Ravens did not match the offer. Eisen also emphasized that the Ravens had no intention of letting Jackson go.
Seeing a lot of teams “passed” on Lamar this past spring takes here. 1) He was NEVER a free agent. You would have had to give @ravens two No. 1 picks to sign him if the Ravens would not match the offer. 2) The Ravens were never going to let him go. That is all.
remember when they all raced to be the first to say they didn’t want Lamar Jackson https://t.co/ueDdO6YQbS
This feels ancient, but.... Remember when every NFL team was allowed to talk to Lamar Jackson in the offseason, and a bunch of teams publicly came out and just said "nah, we're good."
Lots of teams this off-season decided it wasn’t worth trying to get Lamar Jackson. Feels like those teams probably wished they tried a little harder to get him.
Lamar Jackson was a free agent and teams just went, “We good.” I’ll never forget that.
Literally every team could’ve made a play for Lamar this summer. And many of them instead were actively hostile towards that. Imagine looking at Desmond Ridder and being like, “Nah. I’m all set” when Lamar is available