Tag: 2023 Ravens

Part 1 of my Ravens Big Board (found here) outlined where I think the Ravens should go if they draft a player at Pick 22.  Part 2 of the Ravens Big Board will set forth a round-by-round view of who I think the Ravens could/should target.  But a couple of other thoughts came to mind that I decided to put out in this Big Board Part 1 Supplement

More On Round One – The Quarterbacks and Lamar Jackson

What will happen with the quarterbacks in round one of the draft?  I’d be shocked if Bryce Young is not the first pick.  He’s simply the best quarterback in this class at this point.  Do the Texans draft a quarterback at pick 2?  Then what?

There’s no point in speculating about trades for quarterback prospects.  That conversation is just a merry-go-round of confusion.  But there are two similar questions to consider.  First, after the Titans have selected at pick 11, and assuming the Texans did not draft a quarterback at pick 2, are either Anthony Richardson or C.J. Stroud still available? Continue reading “Ravens Big Board Part 1 Supplement: More on Round One”

Should (or must) the Ravens trade Lamar Jackson?  Teams have almost universally rejected Jackson as a free agent.  Many observers attribute this shunning to Lamar’s alleged fully guaranteed contract demand.  But is it more than that?  Yes.  I’ve written numerous times regarding Lamar’s flaws as a pocket passer.  He’s challenged reading defenses.  Just getting to the line of scrimmage in a consistently timely manner has been difficult.  His work habits are less than admirable.  Then there’s the injuries and the obvious issue of how long he can retain his running skills.  Add it all up and he’s nowhere near the “clean” quarterback that teams drool over.  Combined with his contract demands, Lamar makes a poor case for a team to pay him a fortune and give up a lot of draft capital to do it. Continue reading “Should the Ravens Trade Lamar Jackson?”

The non-exclusive tender to Lamar was perhaps a surprise to outsiders.  But it tells us a great deal about Lamar’s likely future and how the Ravens have gauged that future.  No doubt the Ravens had a very good sense that other owners have little taste for fully guaranteed contracts.  There might be a legal issue brewing here (collusion is a tough case to make).  But if Lamar has been unwilling to come off of his fully guaranteed negotiating position (which he must be at this point), there’s no better way for him to learn the illusion of such a contract then by talking to other teams.  Which he is now free to do. Continue reading “The Ravens Non-Exclusive Tender to Lamar – Now What?”

I was originally intending this post as the “pro” case for keeping Lamar.  But I’m changing things around a bit.  It’s more pertinent to take a look at the basic question.  From a salary cap perspective, can the Ravens afford to keep Lamar Jackson as a franchised player in 2023?  Here, the Ravens really are in a salary cap quandary. Continue reading “The Ravens Lamar Salary Cap Quandary”