Overview
- Lamar Jackson left the Week 8 game with a thumb injury and is on injured reserve after surgery that coach Jesse Minter called “potentially” season-ending.
- Jackson remains under contract for one more season, represents himself, holds no-franchise-tag and no-trade protections, and would become an unrestricted free agent in March 2028.
- The Ravens face a projected 2027 cap charge of about $84.34 million for Jackson, which creates large dead-cap risks if they restructure or let him play out the contract.
- League observers report at least one team has done preliminary homework on Jackson and former GM Steve Keim has advised structuring any long-term deal with per-game roster bonuses to protect the club from availability risk.
- Baltimore now must decide this offseason whether to extend Jackson, restructure the deal, or prepare to trade him—most analysts say a post-June 1 move would minimize immediate cash and cap hits and is one key scenario to watch.