OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson spoke for the first time since the playoff loss against the Bills five months ago, admitting that he still hasn’t gotten over that defeat. “We’re going to bounce back,” Jackson said after Tuesday’s minicamp practice. “And when we come back, I feel like we’ll have revenge on our minds.” In his eighth NFL season, Jackson holds the second-best record among quarterbacks since 2018, with a mark of 70-24 (.745), and has led the Ravens to three AFC North titles, including the last two. However, Jackson is the only two-time NFL MVP player who has not reached a Super Bowl. In the most recent playoff loss, a divisional loss by 27-25 against the Bills, Jackson committed two turnovers in the first half. He was intercepted near midfield in the first quarter and lost the ball on the Bills’ 34-yard line in the second quarter. When asked how long it took him to overcome that defeat, Jackson replied: “Honestly, I don’t think I overcome any defeat. I have defeats from youth football that still haunt me.” At the start of the first practice of Baltimore’s minicamp on Tuesday, Ravens quarterbacks coach Tee Martin asked Jackson what movies he had been watching during the offseason. Jackson’s response: all the games he lost. Martin described the playoff loss to the Bills as “a deep loss” for Jackson. Jackson had the opportunity to tie the score at the end of the last quarter when he threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to tight end Isaiah Likely with 1:33 remaining. But Jackson’s pass on the subsequent 2-point conversion was dropped by tight end Mark Andrews. On Tuesday, Jackson defended Andrews and expressed his disgust for those who “harassed” the three-time Pro Bowl tight end on social media. “We wish we had won the game,” Jackson said. “I wish I hadn’t thrown that interception. I wish I hadn’t fumbled the ball. I wish the mishap [with Andrews] hadn’t happened. But it did. It’s just a lesson learned. So next time, we’ll do better.” The only topic Jackson didn’t want to discuss was his contractual situation. Jackson signed a five-year, $260 million contract in 2023, but it was widely viewed as a three-year deal. Baltimore will likely want a new deal with Jackson before the start of next offseason, when his salary cap figure for 2026 rises to $74.5 million. The Ravens’ general manager, Eric DeCosta, recently told the BMore Baseball podcast that the team is in the “introductory stage” of contract extension talks with Jackson. Jackson, who has no agent and represents himself, declined to provide further details on the status of the negotiations.
When told that Harbaugh said Jackson would become the highest-paid player in the NFL on his next contract, Jackson paused and walked up to the microphone to say, “Sounds good.” Jackson is also advocating for the Ravens to sign two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jaire Alexander, who was recently cut by the Green Bay Packers. Jackson said he has spoken with Alexander, who was Jackson’s teammate at Louisville.“I never discuss contractual situations here,” Jackson said. “I don’t want to talk about that, if that’s okay with you.”
Lamar Jackson
“Go for him, Eric,” Jackson said, referring to Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta. “I love all our cornerbacks, don’t get me wrong. But go for him, Eric.”
Lamar Jackson
