Quarterback Lamar Jackson has a new contract with the Baltimore Ravens, and he has a crazy goal for himself to accomplish in the 2023 season.
This offseason, there was at one point uncertainty about who would be the starting quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens. The team was initially unable to reach an agreement with Lamar Jackson on a contract extension after placing a non-exclusive franchise tag. Then there was Jackson’s tweet about requesting a trade back on March 2. But on the opening night of the 2023 NFL Draft, the Ravens and Jackson were able to strike a deal to make him the highest-paid player in league history with a five-year, $260 million contract.
After officially signing his contract this past week, Jackson was asked about what goal he has for the upcoming season. Jackson said that he want to throw “for like 6,000 yards.”
“I want to throw for like 6,000 yards with the weapons we have,” Jackson said, h/t ESPN’s Jamison Hensley. “I’m not an individual award-type guy or a stat watcher. I just want to do that because no one has ever done it and I feel like we have the weapons to do it.”
Lamar Jackson want to throw for 6,000 yards next season
As Jackson said, no quarterback had ever thrown for 6,000 yards in a season. The most passing yards any quarterback recorded in a season was recorded by Peyton Manning in 2013, where he threw for 5,477 yards with the Denver Broncos. Manning threw to players like Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, Wes Welker and Julius Thomas that year.
When it comes to the pass-catching options Jackson had, the Ravens didn’t really assemble the best group. But that all changed this offseason, and Jackson is obviously stoked about it.
Prior to signing Jackson, the Ravens agreed to terms with top free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to a one-year, $15 million contract, which can increase to $18 million. Beckham is coming off of a torn ACL suffered at the end of the 2021 season at Super Bowl 56, but he was the biggest name available in free agency. And by signing Beckham, the odds of Jackson re-signing with the team seemingly increased.
Hours after the Ravens and Jackson agreed to terms on the lucrative contract extension, the team gave the quarterback another gift that night. With the 22nd-overall pick, Baltimore drafted Boston College wide receiver Zay Flowers, who was one of the top prospects at his position in this class.
With that, Jackson’s top targets downfield include Beckham, Flowers, Rashod Bateman and tight end Mark Andrews. That’s a pretty stellar group of pass catchers for Jackson to work with in 2023. Not to mention that Baltimore has a new offensive coordinator in Todd Monken, who spent the past three years at the University of Georgia. We’ll see what passing yard total Jackson will be able to put up at the end of the 17-game regular season.