On 3/8/2023 at 12:36 PM, spindoc said:

I understand and commend Lamar for representing himself.  However, an agent wouldn't have considered following this path with contract negotiation.  He lost his leverage before last season in my opinion.  I genuinely wish him luck.  I like Lamar.  As a fan of another team in the division, I hope someone out there offers him the moon like he hopes and then the Ravens eat it like a giant wad of poo and pay him for years to come.

Out of curiosity, why do you find it commendable and understand Lamar wanting to represent himself? 

1 minute ago, Kenny Powers said:

Out of curiosity, why do you find it commendable and understand Lamar wanting to represent himself? 

I don't know what @spindoc will say but cutting out the middle man feeding off NFL Players is commendable on some level. 

36 minutes ago, theguru said:

I don't know what @spindoc will say but cutting out the middle man feeding off NFL Players is commendable on some level. 

I don't agree with this. Agents provide an amazing benefit to professional athletes. They do so much more than negotiate a contract. Athletes, like almost every 20 something year old, have no clue about managing their finances. Then they get millions. That is a recipe for disaster. Good agents handle all of this on a day-to-day basis. The key is getting a good agent, and that is a big part of the reason why agents have to get licensed.

1 minute ago, Voice of Reason said:

I don't agree with this. Agents provide an amazing benefit to professional athletes. They do so much more than negotiate a contract. Athletes, like almost every 20 something year old, have no clue about managing their finances. Then they get millions. That is a recipe for disaster. Good agents handle all of this on a day-to-day basis. The key is getting a good agent, and that is a big part of the reason why agents have to get licensed.

I don't think it is right for every player (and probably not most players) but some players are capable of handing this responsibility.  Like I said, on some level, but in this case I agree with you.

33 minutes ago, theguru said:

I don't know what @spindoc will say but cutting out the middle man feeding off NFL Players is commendable on some level. 

I agree in principle. I just question how smart it is to try to do something yourself when you do not have the education/training/experience in a very specialized and detail oriented area that potentially could have enormous financial implications on your future. Up to this point, Lamar's decision to act on his own behalf could cost him more than it would have to pay an agent. Now would also be a great time for an agent to be calling any and all teams trying to put together an offer sheet that would force the Raven's hand in offering or not offering. Eh, to each their own, I guess. 

1 minute ago, Kenny Powers said:

I agree in principle. I just question how smart it is to try to do something yourself when you do not have the education/training/experience in a very specialized and detail oriented area that potentially could have enormous financial implications on your future. Up to this point, Lamar's decision to act on his own behalf could cost him more than it would have to pay an agent. Now would also be a great time for an agent to be calling any and all teams trying to put together an offer sheet that would force the Raven's hand in offering or not offering. Eh, to each their own, I guess. 

I agree like I just posted above.  

 

5 minutes ago, TheDeuce said:

 

That’s a tweet lacking in a lot of context. Allen was drafted significantly higher so his rookie money was a lot more, plus he signed his new contract last year ($100MM guaranteed). Obviously Jackson has outperformed his contract, but I’m not following the point of the tweet.

2 minutes ago, bugatti said:

That’s a tweet lacking in a lot of context. Allen was drafted significantly higher so his rookie money was a lot more, plus he signed his new contract last year ($100MM guaranteed). Obviously Jackson has outperformed his contract, but I’m not following the point of the tweet.

There's a lot I could unpack about why Allen was drafter higher and has already received an extension, but I think everyone can read between the lines on that. That's the point of the tweet, IMO.

And for Pete's sake can we please stop talking like the lack of an agent is the reason behind this?

An agent acts on behalf of the player. They do what the player tells them to do, they accept the deals the player tells them to accept, the entertain offers the player tells them to. 

Is there some benefit to having an agent, sure. But acting like Lamar is in the position because he doesn't have an agent is foolish, at best. 

Switching gears here if anyone wants to, what is the latest with Lamar, do we think he will end up with the Ravens this year or somewhere else?

1 minute ago, theguru said:

Switching gears here if anyone wants to, what is the latest with Lamar, do we think he will end up with the Ravens this year or somewhere else?

I can't imagine he ever takes another snap as a Raven.

I don't understand why the Jets don't just grab Lamar instead of ARod and be done with it.

Ravens sign a receiver who averaged less than TWO catches per game last year and people wanna give Lamar crap for requesting a trade. 

5 hours ago, TheDeuce said:

And for Pete's sake can we please stop talking like the lack of an agent is the reason behind this?

An agent acts on behalf of the player. They do what the player tells them to do, they accept the deals the player tells them to accept, the entertain offers the player tells them to. 

Is there some benefit to having an agent, sure. But acting like Lamar is in the position because he doesn't have an agent is foolish, at best. 

The problem is Lamar is not a free agent. He is not in this position because he is without an agent, I agree. But going at this alone while being under the tag puts him at a great disadvantage as there is nobody advising him... especially since it seems the Baltimore bridge has burned. This is not his wheelhouse. What is the old saying? "A man who is his own lawyer has a fool for a client." Now maybe Jackson is back-channeling at the owners' meetings or well connected with other teams' GMs (unlikely since they are colluding) and it'll all work out.