At times over the past two years, speculation has gurgled regarding the possibility that quarterback Lamar Jackson would like to leave the Ravens and join his hometown Dolphins. Now that we know Jackson has asked the Ravens to trade him, half of that equation is in place.
The other half will not be.
Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel made it clear that Miami won’t make a play for Jackson.
Asked whether the recent exercise of Tua Tagovailoa‘s fifth-year option takes the team out of the mix for Lamar or other starting quarterbacks, McDaniel said, “Absolutely.”
“That’s why you pick up a fifth-year option,” McDaniel said, via Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post. “That’s why you, that’s how you do it. That’s why you pick the option up as soon as you know you’re going to. So to, to kind of as opposed to speaking, having an action speak, to really squash any of that an unnecessary direction or chatter.”
That sounds familiar.
The Dolphins were prevented from negotiating with Jackson before the 2023 draft, because they don’t have a first-round pick in the upcoming selection process. After the draft, the Dolphins would (in theory) be able to speak to Jackson, as long as they still have first-round picks in 2024 and 2025.
If the Ravens are willing to trade Jackson, the Dolphins could have gotten involved. And it could have been as simple as, say, sending Tua to Baltimore plus other players and/or picks. McDaniel made it clear that’s just not happening.