Former New England Patriots defensive star and current ESPN personality Rob Ninkovich had some free advice for Baltimore Ravens star quarterback Lamar Jackson.
“Lamar, stop tweeting, and stop putting three letters out there: PCL,” Ninkovich said during Wednesday’s edition of the “Get Up” program, per Jason Ounpraseuth of NESN. “Just don’t even talk about the injury and the past. Don’t even talk about your PCL because these teams, when you start bringing it back up, they’re like, ‘Well, he had a PCL. He’s even talking about his PCL. What was it, 75% PCL?’ Stop tweeting about the injury stuff, please, because that is what these teams hold against every player.”
Ninkovich was specifically referencing Jackson taking to Twitter on Tuesday night to pour cold water over any theory that he chose not to play through a knee injury (Grade 2 PCL strain) across the last six games of the 2022 season (playoffs included) because he had yet to sign a long-term contract extension.
The Ravens ultimately used the non-exclusive franchise tag to retain Jackson’s rights and he subsequently revealed on Twitter that he had requested a trade on March 2.
“Any type of history of injury, they’re going to hold it against you,” Ninkovich continued. “That’s the stuff these teams and owners want to hold against the players. If I was in Lamar’s corner with his group, I would say, ‘Lamar, tweet all you want. Don’t bring up anything about any injury.'”
ESPN NFL insider Chris Mortensen raised eyebrows when he tweeted Monday that at least one team is “hesitant” to pursue Jackson because the former MVP has missed 11 total games, including postseason contests, since Week 1 of the 2021 campaign due to injury concerns. Mortensen added that some have questioned Jackson’s “sleep habits and nutrition” as it pertains to his readiness and availability.
On Tuesday, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank expressed “some concern about whether or not (Jackson) can play his style of game” for years to come without avoiding significant physical setbacks.
Jackson reportedly has negotiated with the Ravens without using a representative certified by the NFL Players Association. Meanwhile, handfuls of other clubs have allegedly decided against making an offer to the one-time NFL Most Valuable Player ahead of this year’s draft.
Jackson may want to start taking advice from outsiders, assuming he he is truly and realistically looking to earn at least $200M in fully guaranteed money via his next contract.
