Stephen A. Smith Has Changed His Tune On Lamar Jackson, Says Ravens Aren't Paying Him To Turn The Ball Over

Stephen A. Smith — who argued in March that Lamar Jackson should get $200 million guaranteed — now says the Baltimore Ravens aren't getting their money's worth from the quarterback.

On ESPN's First Take Monday, the hosts discussed the Ravens' 17-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Smith unloaded on Jackson and claimed his two fourth-quarter turnovers were largely to blame for the loss. And the turnovers aren't an isolated incident.

Smith pointed out the former NFL MVP now has an NFL-worst 11 turnovers in the fourth quarter or overtime of one-score games since 2021.

"That is inexcusable. We got to look at it from that perspective. We also got to look at the fact that he leads all NFL players with seven fumbles ," Smith said. "He's accounted for eight touchdowns this year but has six total turnovers in five games. Come on, man."

Smith acknowledged that dropped passes were a problem for the Ravens in Sunday's loss, too. But that's not an excuse for Jackson not taking care of the football.

"It starts with him. And even though you got those drops, at the end of the day, damn, if you don't turn the ball over, you win anyway," Smith said. "This man has been turning the ball over, and that is not what they're paying him to do."

Stephen A. Smith Rethinking Lamar Jackson Take

Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens spent the offseason in a contract negotiation soap opera. Fans and media speculated for months whether the Ravens would pay the QB top dollar or if he would ultimately take his talent elsewhere.

And Stephen A. was in his corner — calling Baltimore's treatment of Jackson "insulting."

"Lamar Jackson should be in a position where $200 million guaranteed... that's what the Baltimore Ravens should come to the table with based on what the market bears. And we should be able to call it a day," Smith said.

"The fact that they're using this non-exclusive tag tells me they're nowhere near that, which is obviously insulting to Lamar Jackson, which is why I believe this is a mistake."

After a whole lot of drama, Jackson finally signed a contract extension that — at the time — made him the league's highest paid player on an annual average basis. The five-year deal is worth $260 million, with $185 million guaranteed.

So not quite the $200 million guaranteed that Stephen A. Smith had in mind. But still way too much to be fumbling every game.

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