Lamar Jackson's Thumb Injury Raises Bigger Questions About His Baltimore Ravens Future Than Just His Availability This Season

Lamar Jackson's injury could change the Ravens' long-term plans© Getty via AFP

Lamar Jackson's season is likely over after one snap. The Baltimore Ravens placed their quarterback on injured reserve Sunday, after he returned from a four-week high-ankle sprain, threw a single pass and hurt his right thumb on a Bills defender's forearm. He went straight to surgery. Coach Jesse Minter would not call it season-ending, but nobody is planning around his return. The damage may reach well past this year. Jackson's cap hit jumps to $84 million next season, and a new deal is coming whether anyone likes it or not.

Lamar Jackson's thumb injury puts his Ravens future in question

Jackson has played only a season's worth of games across the last two years. Availability was already a worry before this thumb injury, and now he has likely finished his age-29 season while the Ravens fight just to reach the playoffs under first-year coach Minter. An $84 million cap hit is not workable for any serious team, so Baltimore has to reopen his contract. Based on what little is known about Jackson, he will want something as close to fully guaranteed as possible.

That used to be an easy call.

It is harder now. A quarterback about to turn 30 with a short run of recent games gives a front office room to push back, and Jackson's side will have to explain why he should accept less security after what he has done for this team.

Jackson's silence leaves others to shape his story

Jackson keeps a very small circle and hands his public image to almost no one. By most accounts he is engaging and sharp, and few see the game the way he does. The public rarely gets to hear that. Most quarterbacks recovering from surgery would be posting updates, scar photos and rehab clips for fans. Jackson will probably say nothing for weeks, aside from the odd comment on TikTok.

That silence has a price.

Look at how his earlier contract push played out. A story surfaced that Ken Francis, a home fitness equipment businessman, was helping negotiate for Jackson. Jackson denied it with a quote tweet, but the story had already spread, and the leak looked built to weaken his position. No other team showed interest in prying him loose from Baltimore either. When one player faces a league and its clubs, the player rarely controls the narrative.

This time the talk could turn to his toughness, or whether he rushed back or took too long. Then it could spill into the contract itself. Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen have teams of people shaping how they are seen. Jackson needs the same kind of support, and the gap is getting costly.

Jackson does not need to change who he is. He needs a few trusted voices who can speak when he won't. Otherwise, others will tell his story for him over the coming months.