Only a few short hours before Thursday night’s NFL Draft, Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens stole football headlines by announcing the two had reached an agreement on a new deal for their star QB.
The parties agreed to a five-year $260 million deal with $185 million guaranteed. That means that Jackson is now the highest-paid player in league history ($52 million per year), eclipsing the five-year, $255 million history-making deal that Jalen Hurts signed only last week ($179 million guaranteed; $51 million per year).
Jackson’s deal stunned the NFL community, particularly because it happened as everyone waited anxiously for the Draft.
To truly understand the significance of the moment, you must go back five years to the 2018 NFL Draft, where we first witnessed the doubt that shrouded both Lamar’s successful past and what would become an extremely bright future.
As a three-year starter for the Cardinals, Lamar was a star who improved each season.
In his freshman year in 2015, he threw for 1,840 yards with 12 TDs and 8 INTs while rushing for 960 yards and 11 TDs. The next year he threw for 3,543 yards with 30 TDs and 9 INTs and had 1,571 yards rushing and 21 TDs. In his final season with the team, he amassed 3,660 passing yards, 27 TDs and 10 INTs while rushing for 1,601 yards and 18 TDs.
He won multiple conference and national awards, including the 2016 and 2017 ACC Player of the Year, the 2016 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and the 2016 Heisman Trophy. He also led the conference and nation in multiple categories during his final two years.
Yet despite the accolades and on-field performance, many doubted whether he could be an NFL quarterback. That included former Colts’ GM Bill Polian who infamously disrespected Lamar to the highest degree.
“Short and a little bit slight,” said Polian at the time. “Clearly, clearly not the thrower that the other guys are. The accuracy isn’t there.”
When asked where he would fit in, Polian resorted to the historically lazy and most stereotypical troupe employed by so-called NFL talent evaluators.
“I think wide receiver. Exceptional athlete, exceptional ability to make you miss, exceptional acceleration, exceptional instinct with the ball in his hand and that’s rare for wide receivers. That’s [Antonio Brown], and who else? Name me another one, Julio [Jones is] not even like that.”
As the 2018 NFL Draft progressed, it became clear that teams had foolishly listened to Polian and those of his ilk.
It was almost criminal to see the quarterbacks selected before him.
Baker Mayfield went to Cleveland with the first overall pick. Sam Darnold went to the Jets with the third pick, Josh Allen went seventh to the Bills and Josh Rosen went tenth to the Cardinals. Of those four, only Allen is both a star and a starter.
When the Patriots selected Sonny Michel with the 31st pick, we all saw a dejected Lamar and his mother sitting alone at their table.
Then Ozzie Newsome wisely traded back up into the first round and selected Jackson with the 32nd and final pick of the night.
As he donned the Ravens hat and spoke with Deion Sanders about his feelings, you could see the fire and resentment in Jackson’s eyes and swagger as he made a solemn promise to fans.
“They going to get a Super Bowl outta’ me. Believe that,” he said icily.
But some refused to believe “that” and continued to doubt him.
As a rookie, he showed flashes of his talents and the doubt lingered.
But in 2019, his second year in Baltimore, Jackson took the league by storm. That year he threw for 3,127 yards with 36 TDs and 6 INTs. He also rushed for 1,206 yards and 7 TDs. He was named first-team All-Pro and became one of only two players in NFL history to unanimously win league MVP (Tom Brady, 2010).
The Ravens would flourish with Jackson under center, yet when it was time to talk contract extension, things went south quickly.
Lamar’s contentious contract negotiations with the team evolved into a two-year scenario rife with rumors, disrespect and criticism, particularly about Lamar and the fact that he chose his mother over an agent as the manager of his NFL future. Over the last few months, those critics grew louder in volume over Lamar’s chances of securing the deal he wanted absent an agent.
While these critics pointed to Jalen Hurt’s deal that was negotiated by star agent Nicole Lynn, they seemingly/conveniently forgot about Laremy Tunsil who, last month, signed a three-year, $75 million deal with the Texans without the services of an agent. With agent fees ranging between 1-3%, that means Tunsil saved $750,000 to $2.25 million.
Critics also forgot their history and about athletes like Ray Allen who, in 1999, negotiated his own six-year, $70.9 million contract without an agent. He simply paid a team consisting of an accountant, business manager and celebrity lawyer Johnny Cochran an hourly rate that was estimated to be $500 an hour. With an agent fee of 3%, that means Allen saved over $2 million in fees (minus the final tally of his team).
While agents can be great for athletes, it’s not mandatory that they use them.
Lamar Jackson felt he would be better served by being represented by his mother and NFL traditionalists and most fans laughed. Yet they failed to understand the intelligence of Felicia Jones and how she and his team weren’t in it for the naysayers or short money. Jones knew what her son deserved, and she remained cemented to their position until the two sides finally reached an agreement on Thursday evening.
The debate surrounding Jackson’s contract wasn’t about whether he deserved to be paid, for he did. His performance and awards solidified his worth and negated any questions.
Instead, the debate raged over whether his mother could manage his career.
On Thursday evening, Lamar Jackson and Felicia Jones proved to everyone what patience, perseverance and a mother’s love, intellect, belief and talents can accomplish. Because of it, Jackson can laugh at those who have doubted him while he’s walking to the bank.
So if you were a doubter and happen to see him there, make sure you apologize.
