The Baltimore Ravens are working on a contract extension with their star quarterback Lamar Jackson. Both want to go into the future together, but are probably failing so far due to money. While Jackson wants a record contract, the Ravens are struggling with their cap space.

Baltimore/Munich – Raven for life: That’s exactly what Lamar Jackson says he wants to become. But for that to happen, the star quarterback needs a contract extension with the Baltimore Ravens.

Jackson is currently in the fourth and final year of his rookie contract, but is tied to the Ravens for the 2022 NFL season thanks to the application of the fifth-year option. Baltimore has reportedly been working on extending the 24-year-old’s contract for some time.

However, according to “CBS Sports”, an agreement could still take some time.

The reason for this is said to be, among other things, the high demands of the MVP of the 2019 season.

Monstrous contract like Mahomes?

According to the report, the Ravens are currently said to be preparing the largest contract offer in franchise history. Both sides have already made their intentions clear: Baltimore wants to keep Jackson for the long term, the quarterback wants to become a “Raven for life”.

However, a poker game seems to be developing around the modalities of the new working paper.

Because in the current season, the quarterback is again delivering impressive performances, showing how important he is for the future of his team. According to the latest report, Jackson is now seeking a contract comparable to Patrick Mahomes’ extension with the Kansas City Chiefs. Mahomes signed a ten-year deal last year that is expected to pay him around $45 million per year.

Low cap space stands in the way

However, implementing such a contract is not easy for the Ravens at the moment. With a buffer of just $1.125 million, Baltimore has one of the worst cap spaces in the NFL. So space would have to be created for an extension with Jackson – regardless of the amount.

“They have to pay him. They know that and he knows that,” an anonymous general manager is quoted as saying in the report.

While NFL teams’ financial options will increase next season due to new advertising and TV deals, Jackson’s market value will skyrocket with it. Should Baltimore not find a solution to extend Jackson, there would still be the possibility of a franchise tag.

Whether Jackson would like that solution is more than questionable. To put it in perspective: In the current season, this tag would have brought him just over 24 million dollars and thus only about half of the targeted Mahomes level.