Here we are, Monday morning quarterbackering on a Tuesday.
The star atop of the NFL’s tree proved to be Lamar Jackson, who led his Baltimore Ravens to a dominant win over the Super Bowl favorite San Francisco 49ers on Christmas night. Jackson shined bright under the primetime lights, completing 25 of his 32 throws for 252 yards and two touchdowns while running for another 45 yards on seven attempts against one of the game’s most daunting defenses.
Not only did the sparkling performance push the Ravens to what may have been the most impressive win of the season by any team, but it also helped the now-12-3 juggernaut inch closer to clinching the AFC’s No. 1 seed. Oh, and it also gave folks a chance to point and laugh at the teams who did not bother to pursue the 26-year-old in the spring.
In case you need a quick refresher . . . the Ravens hit quite the snag in their offseason contract negotiations with Jackson, who was slapped with the non-exclusive franchise tag back on March 7. That decision opened up the chance for other franchises to talk with the dynamic dual-threat passer—an opportunity that a handful of quarterback-needy teams, to the dismay of many, didn’t seriously consider.
And among those teams were the Carolina Panthers, who caught some shots during Jackson’s holiday classic.
Lamar Jackson was a free agent and teams just went, “We good.” I’ll never forget that.
— JustinTinsley (@JustinTinsley) December 26, 2023
remember when they all raced to be the first to say they didn’t want Lamar Jackson pic.twitter.com/ueDdO6YQbS
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) December 26, 2023
Imagine trading two 1s for Bryce Young and not for Lamar Jackson. https://t.co/no5fvmheKe
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) December 26, 2023
So, did Carolina really make a mistake by not pursuing Jackson? Perhaps it’s not that black and white.
Sure, the optics are rough on this one. Not only have the 2-13 Panthers failed to get a great return out of rookie quarterback Bryce Young to this point, but the 2019 Most Valuable Player has just positioned himself to be the 2023 Most Valuable Player.
Plus, if the Panthers were able to somehow sign Jackson, they would’ve only had to surrender two first-round picks to Baltimore. Instead, they ended up trading two first-rounders, two second-rounders and wide receiver DJ Moore for the rights to Young.
Hindsight, however, is 20/20.
Jackson became “available” on March 7, just three days before the Panthers traded up to the 2023 draft’s No. 1 overall pick. Owner David Tepper, in fact, revealed that his front office thought they even had a three-way deal in place with the Chicago Bears and Houston Texans to get to the No. 2 overall spot on March 8.
Either way, Carolina was making clear inroads at securing one of draft’s top two promising quarterbacks—Young or eventual second pick C.J. Stroud.
Now, what’s the advantage of rostering a top rookie quarterback over an actual MVP? Well, like anything in business, it’s all about the money.
Having who you believe is a franchise quarterback under a rookie deal clears up quite a bit of cash. With your “guy” on a relatively cheap pact, there’s about a five-year window to build around the position with money you normally wouldn’t have.
Tepper, and general manager Scott Fitterer, even admitted to this approach.
And contrary to the popular belief at the time—the Panthers, who finished one game off an NFC South title in 2022, were more than just a quarterback away. In addition to having to overhaul their offense, the defense had (and still does have) multiple long-term pillars to lock up. (We’re looking at you, Brian Burns and Derrick Brown.)
What also gets overlooked when rehashing this topic is Baltimore’s ability to stop the buck. Even though Jackson could’ve reached a new contract with another team, the Ravens always had the option to match any agreement and get him right back.
Given the difficulties they had in ironing out the details of a big-money deal, the Ravens essentially dared another organization to do the work for them. While no one bit, Baltimore eventually cut to the inevitable and made Jackson the sport’s highest-paid player at that moment in time.
In the end, Jackson probably wasn’t going anywhere outside of the 410 area code. And maybe the unwillingness to try and pull him out of there had some additional motivation on an even grander scheme.
But it’s too easy to say that the Panthers, who have been taking a gamble at having it all, would rather have Lamar Jackson than Bryce Young in 2023.
