Ravens don’t have to worry about Lamar Jackson holding out

Lamar Jackson is believed to be on the verge of signing a massive contract extension with the Baltimore Ravens sometime in the near future.

This is why some believe Jackson won’t show up to training camp until a deal is reached.

In an article published by Chris Roling of Bleacher Report, he envisioned six NFL players most likely to hold out of training camp.

One of the players surprisingly featured on the list is Lamar Jackson.

Could Lamar Jackson hold out this summer?

While I nor many fans will agree with the notion that Jackson will not attend training camp, Roling grades Jackson’s chances of holding out are a 4/10 — with 10 being a guaranteed standoff. Certainly not a high number for Jackson, but enough to ask ‘why?’

When defending his opinion, Roling mentions Jackson’s small cap hit and him not having an agent as possible factors.

"“One can’t mention Allen in this sort of discussion and not bring up Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens, in part because he carries an even smaller cap hit in 2021 ($3 million).Never mind, of course, that Jackson actually won an MVP in 2019 before understandably regressing on the stat sheet in 2020. And regressing is used loosely because he still won 11 games, threw 26 touchdowns and rushed for seven more.Like Allen in Buffalo, Jackson could disrupt Baltimore’s plans if he holds out for an extension. And it’s more interesting here because Jackson might negotiate without an agent.Then again, there’s nothing to suggest Baltimore wants to wait. In fact, that could do more harm than good because other passers like Allen could raise the bar for quarterback extensions — something Jackson is sure to understand.”"

Criticism follows Lamar Jackson wherever he goes

If there was an award for the most criticized quarterback, Jackson would have plenty of gold.

When making the jump to the NFL, many scouts doubted Jackson’s ability to pass the ball — let alone play quarterback.

Earlier this week, Jackson was called out for performing football drills with kids on a basketball court at his annual football camp. The former NFL MVP responded to the harsh criticism on Twitter.

Now Jackson is being viewed as a possible no-show for training camp. That certainly seems like an unlikely outcome to the Ravens’ ongoing negotiations with their star quarterback.

Will Lamar Jackson attend Ravens training camp?

It was reported last month that the Ravens were aiming to get a deal done with Jackson prior to training camp. Little to nothing has come out since. The Ravens’ first full-team training camp is scheduled for July 28th.

With less than two weeks to go and neither Jackson nor the organization showing bad blood with one another, I think it’s safe to assume that Lamar Jackson will be in pads and ready for camp.

Whether the two sides agree to terms on a new extension before training camp or not, expect to see Jackson attending with the rest of the team.

If Lamar Jackson doesn’t attend training camp, I think everyone, including Jackson, would be surprised.