Lamar Jackson says he was injured for the Ravens’ playoff loss amid contract saga

Lamar Jackson has defended his absence in the Ravens’ first-round playoff loss last year, saying it would have been ‘selfish’ to play injured as his contract saga now drags on.

Jackson sprained his knee on December 4 and was initially predicted to miss two or three weeks, but wound up missing six as Baltimore was ousted by the Bengals 24-17 in the wild card round.

The quarterback was criticized in some corners for not playing through the pain – including by Michael Vick – and left some wondering if his postseason absence was because he hadn’t gotten the long-term contract he’d wanted yet.

With Jackson – who was placed on the non-exclusive tag earlier this month – still looking for that deal, he took to Twitter Tuesday to defend his reputation.

 ‘I don’t remember me sitting out on my guys week 1 vs jets To week 12 vs Broncos,’ he said. ‘How come all of a sudden I sit out because of money in which I could’ve got hurt at anytime within that time frame when we know the Super Bowl been on my mind since April 2018.’

Jackson (right) said on Twitter that he had requested to leave the Ravens on March 2 

‘Let’s get real. I rather have a 100% PCL than go out there and play horrible forcing myself to put my guys in a bad situation now that’s selfish to me.’

Jackson revealed Monday that he had requested a trade out of Baltimore on March 2, though there hasn’t appeared to be a massive market for the 2019 MVP, who is permitted to negotiate with other teams due to his non-exclusive tag.

Aside from the price it would take to get Jackson in a trade, Colts owner Jim Irsay commented on a major barrier to potentially signing him as a free agent.

In an interview with The Athletic ‘s Zak Keefer, he said, ‘As an owner I do not believe in fully-guaranteed contracts.

‘I think that a percentage is one thing, but from what I’ve seen from the NBA and baseball, I don’t see it as a positive competitively.’

Jackson was previously reported by ESPN to be seeking a fully guaranteed contract. 

Additionally, at least one owner has concerns about his durability. 

Aside from missing six games last year, he also missed the last four games of 2021 with an ankle injury. 

 ‘Looking at it objectively, there is some concern about whether or not he can play his style of game for … how long can that last,’ Falcons owner Arthur Blank told reporters, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 

Ravens coach John Harbaugh has said the team is still planning around Jackson

‘I’m not sure. He’s only 26. Hopefully a long time for his benefit or anybody that he’s signed with. But he’s missed five to six games each of the last two years. This is not like baseball and basketball where you’re playing 82 or 182 games, or whatever baseball is now.’

However, it appears the Ravens are planning on moving forward with Jackson.

Ravens coach said this week that ‘we love’ the quarterback and that they were ‘thinking about Lamar all the time.’

‘We’re building our offense around that idea,’ he told NFL.com ‘I’m just looking forward to getting back to football and I’m confident that’s going to happen.’