Getty Lamar Jackson is keeping his eyes out for a contract extension similar to Patrick Mahomes.
Patrick Mahomes is set to make more money than Lamar Jackson, at least for the next few years, but the two quarterbacks are in slightly different stages when it comes to their contracts. Jackson is in the third year of his rookie deal earning a base salary of $1.34 million with the Ravens for 2020, per Spotrac. The Ravens quarterback signed a four-year, $9.47 million contract coming out of Louisville.
Mahomes just signed a 10-year, $450 million contract extension over the offseason which can balloon up to $500 million depending on the incentives he hits over the course of the deal. The Chiefs quarterback’s base salary is $825,000 for this season which is technically less than Jackson. According to Spotrac, the annual cash value is $10.8 million when considering his signing bonus along with other components of the contract.
Mahomes is still on his rookie deal but his new contract will begin in 2021. The Chiefs quarterback’s contract is structured so his salary will remain low while receiving a good portion of his money via a roster bonus. Mahomes earns a $21.7 million roster bonus just for being on the Chiefs team in 2021. This number goes all the way up to a whopping $49.4 million for Mahomes’ roster bonus during the 2027 season bringing his total annual cash to $59.9 million for that year.
Jackson on Mahomes’ New Contract: ‘I’ve Got to Win a Super Bowl’
Jackson had the perfect reaction when asked about Mahomes’ new record-breaking contract. The Ravens quarterback stated matter-of-factly that it means he has to “win a Super Bowl.”
“My reaction – I’ve just got to win a Super Bowl,” Jackson said, per USA Today. “I don’t really focus on what he has going on, because I’ve still got to prove myself. When that time comes, then we can negotiate after the Super Bowl.”
The Ravens are in a critical window where they have an opportunity to take advantage of their starting quarterback playing on such a low salary compared to the rest of the NFL. It allows the Ravens to spend more money under the salary cap at other positions before being limited once Jackson signs an extension. Jackson still has two more seasons to play on his current contract.
Baltimore would love to follow the blueprint that teams like Kansas City and Seattle have displayed by taking advantage of having an under-priced quarterback still on their first contract under center. So far, Jackson has struggled to have the same postseason success that he has displayed during the regular season, but it is a relatively small sample size.
Mahomes Initially Did Not Know He Could Sign a 10-Year Deal
Mahomes’ contract surprised even the Chiefs quarterback when he signed the deal. He admitted that he was unaware he could sign a contract that would go an additional 10 years.
“There were two things I said when we went into negotiations: I wanted to keep great players around me and I wanted to have long-term security for my family,” Mahomes told CBS Sports. “I certainly wasn’t thinking 10 years. I didn’t even know NFL contracts did that. With those two things in mind, the way we structured the deal and the way we did it, we’re going to have a lot of flexibility to keep great players around me and when you have great players around you, you’re going to have a great football team.”
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