Former Pats star to Lamar Jackson: ‘Stop tweeting’

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 there: PCL,” Ninkovich said on Wednesday’s edition of the “Get Up” program, according to NESN’s Jason Ounpraseuth. “Don’t even talk about the injury and the past. Don’t even talk about your PCL because these teams, when you start talking about it, they’re like, ‘Well, he had a PCL. He even talks about his PCL. What was that, 75% PCL? Please stop tweeting about injuries because that’s what these teams blame every player for.”

Ninkovich was specifically referring to Jackson taking to Twitter on Tuesday night to pour cold water on any theory that he chose not to play due to a knee injury (grade 2 PCL strain) in the past six last games of the 2022 season (playoffs included) because he had not yet signed a long-term contract extension.

The Ravens eventually used the non-exclusive franchise tag to retain Jackson’s rights and he later revealed on Twitter that he requested a trade on March 2.

“Any kind of injury history, they’re going to hold it against you,” Ninkovich continued. “That’s what these teams and owners want to hold against the players. If I was in Lamar’s corner with his group, I’d say, ‘Lamar, tweet whatever you want. Don’t talk about injury.'”

ESPN NFL insider Chris Mortensen raised his eyebrows when he tweeted on Monday that at least one team is “reluctant” to pursue Jackson because the former MVP has missed 11 games overall, including post-season, since week 1 of the 2021 campaign due to injury concerns. Mortensen added that some have questioned Jackson’s “sleep patterns and nutrition” regarding his preparation and availability.

On Tuesday, Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank expressed “some concern about whether or not (Jackson) can play his style of play” for years to come without avoiding major physical setbacks.

Jackson reportedly negotiated with the Ravens without using an NFL Players Association-certified representative. Meanwhile, a handful of other clubs have reportedly decided against making an offer for the former NFL Most Valuable Player ahead of this year’s draft.

Jackson may want to start taking advice from strangers, assuming he’s really and realistically looking to earn at least $200 million in fully guaranteed money via his next contract.