Lamar Jackson agrees record-breaking ‘mega deal’ to stay with Baltimore Ravens

Lamar Jackson has agreed a five-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens just hours before the start of the NFL Draft; deal believed to have made Jackson the highest paid player in NFL history; watch all three days of the NFL Draft live on Sky Sports from Thursday April 27 to Saturday, April 29

Quarterback Lamar Jackson is staying with the Baltimore Ravens on a five-year “mega-deal,” agreeing to terms mere hours before the start of the NFL Draft.

The Ravens revealed the news by posting a video message from Jackson on social media.

“You know, for the last few months, there’s been a lot of ‘he said, she said.’ A lot of nail-biting, a lot of head-scratching going on,” Jackson said.

“But for the next five years, there’s a lot of flock going on,” he added in a reference to the team’s “Ravens Flock” nickname for Baltimore’s fan base.

It’s believed that the deal now makes Jackson the highest paid player in NFL history based on average annual earnings.

NFL Network reported that after the Philadelphia Eagles awarded quarterback Jalen Hurts a record-setting five-year, $255m extension on April 17, the Ravens “offered [Jackson] a deal that trumped it,” calling it a mega-deal.

This agreement ends a lengthy saga that heated up this spring when the 2019 NFL MVP revealed he’d requested a trade on March 2.

Jackson, 26, represented himself in negotiations. Talks geared towards a long-term deal were launched more than a year ago, general manager Eric DeCosta said.

Jackson missed the final five games of the 2022 regular season, plus the wild-card playoff loss at Cincinnati, with a knee sprain. He did not travel with the Ravens for the game against the Bengals, sparking speculation he was ready to move on in the offseason.

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson agreed the deal just hours before the start of the NFL draft

The Ravens placed the $32.41m non-exclusive franchise tag on Jackson at the deadline in early March. Under the terms of the tag, Jackson was free to talk to other teams who could have made an offer sheet; if the Ravens then chose not to match the offer sheet, they would command two first-round picks in exchange for Jackson.

Baltimore signed free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. this month, who said he hoped to catch passes from Jackson but was given no assurances that the quarterback would be his team-mate.

In 12 games last season, Jackson threw for 2,242 yards with 17 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also led the Ravens in rushing with 764 yards and three touchdowns.

Jackson has played in 70 games (61 starts) since the Ravens selected him with the last pick of the first round in the 2018 NFL Draft. He has completed 63.7 per cent of his passes for 12,209 yards with 101 touchdowns and 38 interceptions. He has run for 4,437 yards and 24 scores.

He has a 45-16 record as a starter.