On Monday, March 27, Lamar Jackson tweeted out that he had submitted a trade request to the Baltimore Ravens on March 2. Given that the Ravens never honored that request by trading him, it seems unlikely that a Jackson trade will ever materialize.
But it’s near the end of March now, and Jackson has not signed his franchise tender. It’s more likely now that he gets traded than it was then, and it could lead to him finding a new landing spot after all of the hubbub around free agency has died down.
Jackson’s stance is pretty definitive. He said in his tweet, “As of March 2nd I requested a trade from the Ravens organization for which the Ravens has not been interested in meeting my value, any and everyone that’s has met me or been around me know I love the game of football and my dream is to help a team win the super bowl. You all are great but I had to make a business decision that was best for my family and I.”
On March 1, the day before Jackson’s trade request, GM Eric DeCosta told reporters that he was “optimistic” about ongoing negotiations with Jackson. The two sides are at odds publicly about the progress they’ve been making and may be at odds privately as well. Public statements like Jackson’s are somewhat rare, especially when they run counter to the messaging of the organization.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at some potential landing spots for Jackson in a trade and why those teams might make those moves.
Lamar Jackson Trade Predictions
Lamar Jackson Could Just Stay With the Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens hold all the cards. They could simply refuse the trade request and hold firm with the offer that they’ve provided. Jackson doesn’t have much recourse, and though he can technically contact other teams because of the parameters of the franchise tag rules — unlike most situations with a player request — Baltimore basically doesn’t have to entertain anything other teams have to offer.
Though Jackson’s trade request comes with an implied threat of potentially holding out the season, that likely hurts his value more than it hurts the Ravens.
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Very few player holdouts result in missed game time. Le’Veon Bell’s holdout with the Steelers was notable because it was rare. It wouldn’t be a holdout in the traditional sense because Jackson won’t have signed the franchise tender, which means without a contract, he’s not withholding services and cannot be fined. Nevertheless, it’s a massive restriction on Jackson.
The Detroit Lions Have the Means and the Need To Trade for Lamar
With the sixth overall pick in the NFL draft and some questions at the quarterback position, the Detroit Lions have the draft capital to trade for Jackson and become a dominant force for the NFC for the first time in a long time.
Already positioned as Vegas’ favorites to win the NFC North, Detroit could take their excellently built team and turn it up a level by adding Jackson. There’s an excellent offensive and defensive line already in place, a great running game, and some high-level receiving talent.
While it would force the Lions to lose out on using their first-round pick to improve their secondary, they’ve already done excellent work shoring up their weaknesses with smart free agent signings and could easily absorb missing out on some team-building capital in order to turn from contenders into favorites.
Jackson Could Revive the Atlanta Falcons
Jackson is following the trail blazed by Michael Vick as an elite QB runner, and bringing that element back to Atlanta already sounds appealing. It’s even more appealing when accounting for the fact that Arthur Smith’s scheme is perfectly suited for a player like Jackson. It incorporates a heavy dosage of quarterback runs as part of a complete offense — instead of an offense that happened to put some QB runs in the playbook.
Without much quarterback talent, there were some brilliant moments put together by the Atlanta offense, and with players like Kyle Pitts and Drake London on the roster, the Falcons could do some damage through the air as well.
Underrated second-year RB Tyler Allgeier would benefit enormously from Jackson’s presence. Additionally, Atlanta was lucky enough to re-sign who they needed to in free agency to maintain their offensive line. The NFC South is open for the taking, so the Falcons could easily use this as a springboard to take themselves to the playoffs.
The Houston Texans Could Supercharge Their Rebuild
The second overall pick is a massive chip, and the Houston Texans are in a rare spot where they might be able to trade it for Jackson and get some picks back in return to allow them to remain relevant in this year’s draft.
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The Texans are negotiating from a position of strength and don’t have any desperation listening to trade deals. If they don’t like something, they’ll just turn their card in for one of the top two quarterbacks in this year’s draft. As a result, Houston might be able to get Baltimore’s first-round pick back in such an exchange, where the Ravens give up Jackson and a first-round pick in order to obtain a QB on a rookie deal.
Jackson Could Play for the Newest NFL Owner of the Washington Commanders
The Washington Commanders don’t have a quarterback that many on the outside are confident in and have opted out of the QB market in free agency and in trade negotiations. That might be because big moves would have to go through ownership in some way, and without clarity at the top, it could be tough to make a move.
Of course, Washington’s front office and coaching staff might be genuinely committed to Sam Howell, but it’s tough to think that faith in a fifth-round pick exceeds the promise of a potential MVP. There’s a lot in place to make that team go — they still have to work out the offensive line, but the Commanders have a tremendous skill corps and will need all the help they can get to be competitive in a tough NFC East.
Given that there’s a good chance that Ron Rivera and Martin Mayhew might be on the outside looking in with a new ownership group, winning right away with a new quarterback could do a lot to secure their jobs.