New England reportedly won't pursue Jackson
While Lamar Jackson got a message to Patriots owner Robert Kraft about his interest in playing for New England, it seems the organization doesn’t intend to take it any further than that.
Boston Sports Journal’s Greg Bedard on Tuesday evening poured cold water on the speculation linking Jackson to the Patriots. The longtime Patriots reporter shared how, barring unforeseen circumstances, the team is not expected to pursue Jackson whether that be by a signing or trade, citing three league sources.
Bedard shared how the overall cost it would take to acquire Jackson, both in terms of the two first-round draft picks New England would need to give up and the long-term contract it would have to offer the 2019 NFL MVP, is not something the franchise is interested in.
Back when Jackson was given the non-exclusive franchise tag by the Baltimore Ravens earlier this month, fellow Patriots reporter Mark Daniels of MassLive.com reported the team was not interested in pursuing him.
Since then, however, especially with Jackson making his trade request public Monday just before Kraft fueled the fire with his message, rumors have ramped up involving the Patriots.
Unfortunately for those hoping Bill Belichick would pull off a blockbuster for Jackson, it doesn’t seem that will be the case.