What makes Lamar Jackson so inspirational is his rags-to-riches story. Born in an economically distressed area of Pompano Beach, Florida, the Ravens star was raised by a single mother and saw economic hardships first-hand. While most in his position would have resorted to nefarious ways, Lamar escaped these demons with righteousness.
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The Ravens superstar in his chat with “GQ Sports” unabashedly admitted that money was always the main priority for him. Considering how he lost his father and grandmother on the same day and the ensuing hardships his mother faced to raise him and his siblings, Lamar knew that he wanted enough money never to see a tough day in his life. “I knew I wanted to be rich and for my people to be well-off,” Jackson said.
While it’s easy to dream of being rich when deprived of wealth, what’s tough is to have a strong moral compass in the pursuit of riches. As revealed by the Ravens QB, he had no shortage of friends who were deep into the world of sin to make ends meet. Being around people with this mentality at the age of 12-13 is a recipe for a lawbreaker in the making.
Luckily for Lamar, he was mature enough to realize that fast money with the potential of doing time in jail is not worth the pain. Thus, Lamar resisted his friends’ habits and instead chose to go the less-traversed road of hard work.
“My friends were grown-a*s men. We’re 12 and 13, they were already doing shit like the older guys. Hell nah. When my old friends got in trouble and I’d see that they got five years, I’m like, ‘What the fu*k? What the hell he did?’ Robbery. I’m like, ‘I don’t want money that bad. I can wait.’”
While this certainly helped him avoid being an offender, the decision also helped him know the value of every single penny. This trait of his was in full display last year during his contract negotiations with the Ravens.
When Lamar Jackson Negotiated With The Ravens
Going through years of toil and tears is enough for any man to help him know his value. Hence, it was not surprising to see Lamar Jackson stand his ground for the salary he felt he deserved from the Ravens.
One of the biggest extension saga last year was between Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. The franchise represented by GM Eric DeCosta or as Lamar calls him EDC [Every Dollar Counts] indulged in a months-long negotiation process with Jackson. The offer first started at $230 million which was rejected by Lamar because he wanted a fully guaranteed deal like DeShaun Watson.
The negotiations soon hit a stalemate resulting in the QB publicly issuing a trade request. This however turned out to be a masterstroke as it forced ‘EDC’ to mail Lamar an improved offer of $260 million with $135 million guaranteed which was eventually accepted by the QB.
The most interesting and perhaps telling insight from this negotiation is the fact that Lamar had no representative to crack this deal on his behalf. This meant that GM DeCosta had to read and explain each line to the QB and his mother.
While Lamar did manage to get every dollar counted for himself, his self-negotiation shows how deeply he wanted to be paid right. And of course, to save money on agent fees and commissions. Safe to say, Lamar Jackson has all the signs of being a shrewd businessman.
