Latest Lamar Jackson Injury Further Complicates His Ravens Contract Status

Lamar Jackson made his eagerly awaited return to the Ravens’ lineup Sunday, where he was set to resume his push toward a potential first career Super Bowl appearance and a new contract that will presumably make him the NFL’s highest-paid player again.

That lasted all of one play.

The two-time league MVP exited Sunday’s game against the Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y., with a thumb injury to his throwing hand suffered on the Ravens’ opening offensive snap. Jackson hit his right hand on the arm or hand of Bills pass rusher Greg Rousseau while throwing.

He left the field and was taken immediately to the locker room by members of the team’s medical staff. The Ravens initially called the quarterback questionable to return to the game but soon after officially ruled out such a return. The specifics of Jackson’s injury and the timetable for his recovery were not immediately known.

The Ravens and Jackson did not agree to a contract extension before this season. That raised the stakes considerably for what will occur from this point onward.

Jackson, who does not have an agent and represents himself in contract negotiations, is in the fourth season of a five-year, $260 million deal that runs through the 2027 season. Barring an agreement before then, Jackson will enter the upcoming offseason with only one season remaining on his contract.

He was the league’s highest-paid player when he signed his contract in 2023. Now, his deal ranks 12th in the NFL based on average annual value.

Jackson had missed the Ravens’ previous three games because of an ankle injury, but he was a full participant in practices last week and was cleared to return.

His latest injury came Sunday in a would-be quarterback duel of former MVPs with the Bills’ Josh Allen.

Jackson’s backup, Tyler Huntley, also left Sunday’s game with a toe injury. The Ravens went to Joe Fagnano, an undrafted rookie from Connecticut. He was listed as the emergency third quarterback on their game-day inactive list Sunday, meaning he was eligible to enter the game only because of the injuries to Jackson and Huntley.

The Ravens thus went from a $260 million quarterback to a rookie with a league-miniumum salary of $885,000 for this season.

The team chose Fagnano over Diego Pavia, the former Heisman Trophy runner-up from Vanderbilt, in the offseason after signing both as undrafted rookies. The Ravens waived Pavia in July, just before training camp opened.