The Baltimore Ravens are "fervently hopeful" that a deal with Lamar Jackson will get done.
Jackson's future with the Ravens remains uncertain ahead of Tuesday's franchise tag deadline, with the quarterback yet to sign a long-term contract.
The Baltimore signal-caller, who represents himself rather than employing an agent, reportedly wants a fully guaranteed deal, but the Ravens are reluctant to offer that, meaning talks have been deadlocked.
"You can't win in this league without a strong quarterback. I mean, that's been proven," Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said.
"We want Lamar here. We think he's one of the best quarterbacks in the league. He's certainly one of our best players, and we want him back.
"We understand that living in a world without a quarterback is a bad world to live in."
DeCosta voluntarily said that few teams have made more trades than the Ravens since he became GM four years ago but had no plans to offload Jackson.
"I covet great players. I covet quarterbacks. And I love Lamar," DeCosta said. "That has not factored in one time with me. We want to do what's best for the club. We try to do what we can for Lamar. We want to make everybody happy."
The Ravens can place the franchise tag on Jackson before Tuesday's deadline, but would have to create more room in their salary cap to fit the QB's tag under the cap.
The exclusive tag is projected to cost Baltimore $45.2million, while a non-exclusive tag would be around $32m, but the latter opens him up to offer sheets from rival clubs.
"Both understand the urgency of the situation," added DeCosta, before reiterating he remains "positive" on agreeing a new deal.
"I've seen a lot of deals happen when things look bleak, or I haven't seen deals when I would've thought it was a slam dunk," he said. "It takes two people to do it. I remain positive. I have no reason not to remain positive."
Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said he was "200 per cent" that 2019 MVP Jackson wanted to remain with Baltimore.
"He's my quarterback, he's my guy," Harbaugh said. "I love him. As a coach, I'm looking forward to seeing it get done but it's not easy. It's the business part of it but I'm fervently hopeful and excited.
"We've been texting back and forth here and there ever since the season was over. I feel like 'Mar is doing really well. It's just part of the business, it's what you expect when you have a great quarterback."
Jackson threw 17 touchdown passes with a 62.3 per cent completion rate across 12 starts in the 2022 regular season, which was cut short due to a knee injury. His 2021 campaign was also impacted by an ankle injury, Jackson again making only 12 starts.
Jaguars QB Lawrence has high-ankle sprain, status for Week 14 uncertain
Trevor Lawrence sustained a right high-ankle sprain in Monday's night's 34-31 overtime loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Jaguars coach Doug Person revealed the diagnosis while talking to reporters Tuesday.
"Everything is stable," Pederson said. "Everything looks good and we'll see where he is in a couple of days."
Jacksonville visits the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, and Pederson didn't rule out Lawrence from playing.
"I'm not going to put that timetable on Trevor, not going to put him in a box like that," Pederson said.
Lawrence was injured with about five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter when his his right leg bent awkwardly after being stepped on by teammate Walker Little as he was sacked. He went to the ground in obvious pain and needed to be helped off the field. X-rays taken at Jacksonville's stadium were negative.
"The one last night looked worse than what it really was - very fortunate there," Pederson said. "But he seems to have a little bit of a knack (for avoiding serious injury)."
If he can't play, it would be the first game the durable Lawrence would miss since the Jaguars selected him No. 1 overall in the 2021 NFL draft.
Backup C.J. Beathard would then make his 13th career start - and first since Week 17 of the 2020 season for the San Francisco 49ers. He is 2-10 as a starter in the NFL.
Replacing Lawrence on Monday, Beathard completed 9-of-10 passes for 63 yards.
"It's good to get C.J. a full week of preparation," Pederson said. "Trevor will stay mentally sharp and obviously see where he's at."
Lawrence was enjoying another showing before the injury, completing 22-of-29 passes for 258 yards with a pair of touchdowns.
In 12 games this season, he has 3,004 passing yards with 14 passing touchdowns and seven interceptions.
While Lawrence's status is uncertain, Pederson announced that top wide receiver Christian Kirk will be sidelined for "some time" due to a core muscle injury that will likely require surgery.
Kirk, who was injured on the first play from scrimmage against the Bengals, leads Jacksonville with 787 receiving yards on 57 receptions with three touchdown catches.
With Monday's loss, the Jaguars dropped to 8-4 and their lead atop the AFC South shrunk to one game over the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans.
The Cincinnati Bengals stunned the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-31 on the back of kicker Evan McPherson’s overtime field goal.
In just his second career start, Bengals quarterback Jake Browning threw for 354 yards and a touchdown while his counterpart Trevor Lawrence left the field late in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury.
The Jaguars opened the scoring in the first quarter through running back Travis Etienne Jr before Cincinnati equalised at the start of the second with a six-yard touchdown run from Joe Mixon.
A touchdown to Jacksonville’s Evan Engram and Mixon finding the end zone for his second saw the half-time score even at 14-14.
Momentum continued to shift after the break, Cincinatti briefly taking the lead before the Jaguars entered the fourth quarter with a seven-point advantage.
The Bengals levelled again through a one-yard touchdown run from Browning and took the lead on a 54-yard field goal with just two minutes and 28 seconds on the clock.
The Cincinnati defence was almost able to wrap things up in regulation, but Jaguars kicker Brandon McManus was forced overtime in the final 30 seconds.
With Lawrence out of the game, the Bengals were ultimately able to claim their sixth win of the season through McPherson’s 48-yard conversion.
Free agent LB Leonard signs with Eagles
Shaquille Leonard has found a new home.
The free agent linebacker agreed to a one-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday.
The 28-year-old had also met with the Dallas Cowboys, but ultimately decided to join the reigning NFC champions.
The Eagles, who visit the Cowboys on Sunday, suddenly need to shore up their defence after surrendering 456 yards in yesterday's 42-19 drubbing by the San Francisco 49ers in the highly anticipated NFC championship game rematch.
Since Week 11, Philadelphia is 31st in rushing defence, permitting an average of 162.3 yards per game on the ground after boasting the league's top-ranked rushing defence prior to its Week 10 bye, yielding 66.3 rushing yards per game.
The hope is Leonard, who was surprisingly waived by the Indianapolis Colts on November 21, can recapture the play that made him one of the top defenders in the league.
Leonard was voted to the AP All-Pro team as a rookie in 2018, then again in 2020 and 2021, but his injuries limited him to just three games last season and his production has dropped significantly.
After spending his first six seasons in Indianapolis, he was then cut by the Colts last month after complaining about his lack of playing time.
He had started the first nine games of the season for Indianapolis, registering 65 tackles with two going for loss.
In 70 career games, Leonard has 15 sacks, 12 interceptions, 17 forced fumbles and seven fumble recoveries.
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