Linebacker Roquan Smith signed a five-year extension with the Ravens in January and he worked out the deal with the team while working without an agent.
Smith was able to work out that deal after joining Baltimore in a midseason trade with the Bears, but another Ravens player without an agent hasn’t been able to get a deal done despite a longer relationship with the team.
Quarterback Lamar Jackson’s contract situation continues to loom over the Ravens as the offseason gets underway. In an interview from the Pro Bowl, Smith said he wants Jackson to stick around but hasn’t offered any advice about getting a deal done because their situations are only superficially similar.
“I haven’t really chatted with him about anything,” Smith said, via NFL.com. “Cause all our situations are unique in their own way. It would be wrong of me to try to go in and say this or that, because his situation is clearly different than mine, so I can’t really go in there and say you should do this or that. He’s a grown man at the end of the day, and he’s gonna do what he feels is best for him and I support him just from one man to another.”
The window for the Ravens to use the franchise tag on Jackson will open later this month and that seems to be a likely development if they aren’t able to work out a new deal in the next few weeks. That could turn out to be a precursor to a trade as there are still several paths things could take for Jackson and the Ravens.