he would have had more total guarantees than anyone in the league except Watson - kyler had 160m in total guarantees and russ had 165m in total guarantees - lamar's 160-180 range most likely would have been bigger than both of them
all we know right now is what the ravens were offering lamar when they had the leverage, they will have a lot less leverage next year because of the franchise tag cap hit - i imagine the offered contract is going to get substantially bigger in terms of guarantees when they're next at the table
Maybe. I don't think its going to change dramatically unless somebody else signs before he does and comes in higher.
Only thing the franchise tag does is lock in how much money they'll have to pay him next year and, maybe, the year after. It means he'll get sizeable cash flow in first two years. Don't think it changes anything about AAV, Gtd money, etc. unless he is like the best QB in the league this year and wins a ton, or somebody else signs before him.
Also, as I said before, I don't think the Ravens are terrified of the cap hit next year as much as we would suspect. It's limiting, but not devastating. Not talking substantial roster cuts that weren't likely to happen already. Just won't be big spenders in FA.
And that's based on the assumption of like a $30-35M increase to the cap.