In the absence of a long-term contract for Lamar Jackson, what are the options of Eric DeCosta and the Baltimore Ravens organization?
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
lamar jackson, ravens, lamar, year, baltimore, people, play, car, coons, guaranteed, talking, dennis, team, terps, games, vehicles, quarterback, glaxo, texans, angelo
SPEAKERS
Dennis Koulatsos, Nestor Aparicio
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome back, w n s t test the Baltimore and Baltimore positive we’re positively into March, spring training March Madness and the true madness, which is what’s going to happen to Lamar Jackson that is Co Ops is joining us now he will be discussing all of these things and more eats and lacrosse season as well in his world on Thursday from three until five and the Sunday Sports voice and of course you can find them out at D Colossus show as well and you’ll hear it on Sunday morning as well. But we get together here usually early in the week are talking about things and we have no football now, right? Like the Angelo’s family doesn’t put the baseball games on so we can’t even see these young guys play. And we’re watching the Terps. But this Lamar Jackson story is bigger than the Orioles the Terps bigger than the Ravens. It’s really like it’s an ESPN story now right like it’s it’s the hot take topic for sports fans everywhere in regard to how the ravens are going to handle this. It’s weirdly become sort of the epicenter of the offseason in a lot of ways.
Dennis Koulatsos 01:08
No question about Nestor, it affects not just the Baltimore Ravens, but the entire league, the entire NFL, whether you’re talking about free agency, the NFL Draft combine their six to 10 teams that could potentially bid for Lamar Jackson’s services. So that would certainly call the domino effect in terms of poor all these teams looking at in free agency as well as a draft Case in point of the Ravens. The Ravens have to be ready to draft five players to perhaps trade back trade trade up, not trade at all standstill or they can have a plethora of picks if they do in fact move away from luxury Lamar Jackson in the tech and trade scenario. So all these things have to be addressed. So the domino effect that Lamar Jackson stalemate with the Ravens has had throughout the league, NASA just they have a very important,
Nestor Aparicio 01:55
you know, all these years later, it’s been 15 years now. I saw Chad henne play football playoff football last month, right literally right. And I thought about the way the Ravens played the game with Flacco the first time around. And I thought about how they played the game the second time around when they were done with Flacco. They were done with him for whatever, Bryce age bracket whatever feels to me and it feels to you. And we’re the only two guys maybe lock in for us on this. But I don’t know what the hell he believes these days. But I don’t we’re the only ones really, really pretty convinced he’s gone like we are. And if we’re convinced he’s gone. And I’m talking to Luke about Taylor Hani key or Derek Carr, who apparently the Jets are in love with now or you know, depends on which week between now and the draft that we have to combine this week. Owners meetings offseason, Herbert burrow hurts. I mean, any of those guys could sign a deal any day, right? But we’re talking about all this. But this would be where the Ravens combine weak would fall in love with somebody they can get at 16 or 12 or 18. They fell in love with Lamar Jackson a 32. And they’ve made it work for five years, and they haven’t paid them a lot of money. And they’ve won a lot of games. And I think I think they’re done with him. I think there’s a long list of reasons why I think they’re done with him same as you. So if they’re done with him, this will be as important a week as there is because whoever that quarterback, they’ve been out there looking at and saying, Well if we do tomorrow, we got to get that guy and maybe we’ll suck next year, maybe 117 or eight get maybe will disappoint glaze Campbell and Marlon Humphrey who were convinced Lamar is coming back right somehow. But this would be a week during the underwear Olympics where whomever their scouts liked in the season, they’ve known they have a quarterback issue. This isn’t new. It hasn’t just gotten dropped on their lap. And whatever was scrimmaged in Jupiter. Between Steve Ashanti Eric to costed the brass I guess Chad Steele was there too. That’d be interesting. Kevin Byrne used to go sometimes. So I would say for me that quarterback this week, this is a really important week for the ravens and whoever their next quarterbacks gonna be whether it’s Derek Carr, hey, veteran guy whatever. Even if he took a veteran guy if they fall in love with a Joe Flacco not a chat any but couldn’t get a Matt Ryan or if they don’t like a CJ Straub. But they may be like, I don’t know what guy they like. But whatever guy they like and say, we can build around that guy. Hey, five years ago, they fall in love with this kid from Louisville nobody else wanted.
Dennis Koulatsos 04:45
Well, let’s keep in mind too that Todd Monken the new offensive coordinator here went back to back national championships with a guy by the name of Stetson Bennett and looking at Bennett’s draft reports he can go as high as a fourth round and he could also go on draft that depending on what He does. This week at the combine, he’s lurking in the background. I think the sad thing for me in that says I would love to see what Lamar Jackson would do and a Todd Monken offense, still an outside shot that could happen. Lamar Jackson does not have to sigh the tag, right? They put a tag contract in front of them. He could just say I’m not signing it. He could just show up September the first before the league start funding and gain checks, and he can still very much play or sit out on the one year deal. Lots of things have to discuss I don’t think
Nestor Aparicio 05:31
the Ravens want to do that the Ravens will not be a party to that right.
Dennis Koulatsos 05:34
They don’t want to do that. What are their options though? If they tag him and he’s refused to sign the tag? What options would they have in us? I mean, they get caught they will get somebody to play quarterback for them right? And you would just have this guy on the books I guess or not I don’t know how that’s
Nestor Aparicio 05:51
the lady on Bell plan right? Like
Dennis Koulatsos 05:55
for levy levy on though, did it? Well, I
Nestor Aparicio 05:57
Hey, it hasn’t worked out well for a couple of guys that have sort of swum against the water against you know,
Dennis Koulatsos 06:04
Phil a year older I get you don’t have you don’t get the wear and tear on your body. But you’re still a year older. You’re not fighting you’re not gonna win against father time.
Nestor Aparicio 06:11
Or race never played again. Right. Ray Rice never played again. Oh, snap again. Here the other day.
Dennis Koulatsos 06:17
Somebody told me I asked me yesterday this had how’s the Mars neat? We don’t know. We don’t know has a knee healed ahead to begin to heal. Will he be ready come September the first will he be ready for training camp or OTAs? Regardless of who he’s playing for, what’s what’s the status? What’s the update on his knee and
Nestor Aparicio 06:33
negotiate all this without an agent like I started thinking about Deshaun Watson last year, and I talked to Luke about this URL. You can check it out. Both are positive. And I said this time last year Deshaun. Watson is trying to stay out of jail. He’s got 30 Women chasing him around. He’s got lawyers from them chasing them around. He’s trying to stay fit enough to play quarterback. He’s trying to get a deal. The Texans are trying to sanitize themselves and get rid of him and get as much back as they can get No, give a rat’s patootie how much money he gets. And then the phone starts burning up. And all of a sudden the Texans are like, Holy hell, this guy’s a serial rapist and four teams are like, willing to give up three drafts to us for him and pay him well which one’s really gonna pay him? All this got handled by some cat and a tie. That’s an agent that has a team of people. And I’ve seen these teams have team Rosenhaus. I mean, Dennis, I begged you to go to the combine all these four they threw me out. So shame on both of us for not doing it. Not really Shame on you, because it’s really cold and awful there. You really don’t want to go to Indianapolis. But you know what I mean? But I would go out there and see the organizations that these agents have put together Jeff Moore, at least Steinberg, you know, these guys just don’t collect their 5% of Patrick mahomes is deal put in your pocket hang out. I mean, they have real people that do real work. And when it comes to this part of the negotiation and all of it, whether it’s Lamar is knee, we need to get we need to get a physical, how much money what are the guarantees, we don’t even know the young man, can we meet the young man, Daniel Schneider would want to send the helicopter and bring him down to Potomac and sit him in the den and sit there and talk to him for 10 hours before you give ga $50 million. Right? Like I can’t believe that the Browns gave Deshaun Watson 20 $50 million without meeting like the crazy stuff. So all of this it was orchestrated feverishly last year between the Texans all of their Eric to Costas and representatives and legal people, all of the Browns people all the Falcons, people, all the Panthers people, all the saints people, and then all of Deshaun Watson’s team, that got him $232 million guaranteed money. There was a ton of activity. That’s a lot of people. It’s a lot of secretaries. It’s a lot of appointments. It’s a lot of phones, a lot of zoom. It’s a lot of legal it’s a lot of cat biologists, it’s the owner, it’s the owner’s wife in Cleveland, right? How is that going to happen here, Dennis? And to your point, you’re like, oh, maybe eight or 10 teams. So you’re going to now multiply that for the Sooners for Lamar.
Dennis Koulatsos 09:15
I am I really and who gets to talk
Nestor Aparicio 09:17
to Lamar Lamar is mother. I mean, who’s who’s talking to the Falcons about money, like who’s doing that on behalf of Lamar. Look,
Dennis Koulatsos 09:26
he’s got people in his camp. We don’t know who his people are, besides his mother. The NFL Players Association certainly has their own leaks. They contacted allegedly Stephen A Smith and told him that Lamar Jackson’s camp has never demanded a fully guaranteed contract. Well, that’s just that’s just wordplay. Let’s say he asked for 300 million or 250 of it guaranteed. Okay, so it’s more guaranteed money then on Watson net. So what it’s all semantics. It’s all wordplay. It doesn’t matter. It’s all noise and it’s got to remain noise nests and definitely noise until somebody blanks until somebody does something which will be the Baltimore Ravens. By placing the exclusive tag on a more exact, I do not believe they’re going to hear the non exclusive tag on them. They’ll put the exclusive tag on them then then they’ll wait for the phone to ring, whether it rings one time or eight times. And it only has to ring once. 10 teams will bet against themselves for sure. We I think we saw the Browns do that. And now they have a $55 million cap hit for the next four years. And the division would have to play the Ravens the Steelers and the Bengals twice every year.
Nestor Aparicio 10:32
But will they be playing the Ravens with Lamar Jackson or Derek Carr or Stetson better?
Dennis Koulatsos 10:38
Baker Baker we may see Baker Mayfield and Baltimore a lot of things could happen this thing with with Todd Monken as your offensive coordinator and as a lot of things can happen this thing to go in multiple directions.
Nestor Aparicio 10:50
All right. So what would what would make Lamar come? How would Lamar stay here? I got I we’ve gone the other direction. You and I have been negative, you know, the car dealer and security and loudmouth or whatever, they’re negative? More.
Dennis Koulatsos 11:06
I’m alone. Mr. Jackson, you know that? I know you do. And but I’m also a businessman. And I wouldn’t guarantee any player a full contract. I don’t care who it is. It handicaps your team. If Lamar Jackson gets to 50 Guaranteed he blows out in the next year never played again, guess what? The team is not going to win for the next four or five years. It’s as simple as that. That’s why you can’t do it. This it’s not the business thing to do.
Nestor Aparicio 11:32
Okay, so what what’s going to happen in your mind is looking looks like I know it gets clicks to say you know what’s going to happen looks like I have no idea but only thing I feel like I’m pretty sure of is that the ravens are done with it. And that that and I don’t know that he’s not done with the Ravens either. I don’t know enough about that. But him not waving a towel on the sideline during a playoff game. Like I think he in his mind is like they don’t love me enough. I think this is a very Happy divorce on both sides. If I am guessing about this. Lamar kind of doesn’t trust them. And they kind of don’t trust Lamar on Twitter for three and a half hours thing out Landis stuff that only his girlfriend could talk about. I just don’t think they want to be in business with him anymore. And and because of that, I believe there will be an outcome now what happens between now and then when they sit this look because to constant hardball. We’re going to take the podium again this week. And I mean the last time hardball got here, Lamar was picking the offensive coordinators. Let’s see what fudge he can come up with this time. Right? So but with the cost of sweating bullets and lion is you know, just lying, just sitting there like a really poor Kenny Rogers, gambler at the poker table lying and so obviously scribbling and sweating and not know iContact all of the tells me to constantly a terrible poker player, but they’re gonna have to do that again. And the most important thing and I think it’s been six weeks since I said this to you and I know you agree is the most important thing they could do is talk about what a great young man Lamar is and what a hard worker he is, and what how they’re looking forward to having him back. And they can’t wait for him to get together. Like all of this, selling it down the river that he’s coming back.
Dennis Koulatsos 13:22
Yeah, but that’s exactly what they’ve done. They’ve been quiet. There’s been no nothing coming out other vegans camp except what you just said they, they love him. They want him back. They’d like to see him sign a contract. But the contract did say it takes two to tango. And my belief is if Lamar Jackson wants to be in Baltimore, he’ll make it happen. Do I see it coming together? Perhaps maybe a four year deal that would get his attention maybe with a higher guarantee. But if he wants to be in Baltimore, Nestor, he’ll be in Baltimore. And as you and I’ve talked at nauseam all indications are he does not want to be in Baltimore. So there they will just like any player who doesn’t want to be in Baltimore, they will move them out at
Nestor Aparicio 13:58
what tells you he doesn’t want to be in Baltimore. What tells you that that he’s done?
Dennis Koulatsos 14:02
Well, I think him not traveling to Cincinnati to be able to tell for his team was telling. I think they were shocked he never came back that for his injury against the Broncos. I think him giving out his own injury report to tell fans Hey, I’m not making this up, but I’m really injured. I think the back and forth with that fan and the vulgar language he used was a big setback in a very image conscious to a very image conscious organization. I think all those things are huge to the rate when and they factor in and that’s why I don’t think he’s coming back.
Nestor Aparicio 14:36
But that is Glaxo speaking his truth he’ll be doing that on Thursday from three in the five as well as over Koons Baltimore for we’re making this I gotta tell you I drew you know my my daughter won’t got a car from you and I actually had to drive it let me let me just say this Can I make a public service announcement cuz I know you can have internationally sometimes. Never, ever, ever and your car deal you should know this. Never ever put your car keys in the back check bag. Because if you don’t get checked bag, you don’t get your car. So the reason I was driving my coons for my family vehicle from your dealership, my daughter law, because I didn’t have a car the other night because I trapped myself and my car keys were in Chicago. So but it was kind of like some out of the Blues Brothers, you know what I mean? So it happened, give me a little update on the dealership and what’s going on, because we’re getting into spring Presidents Day all that my wife’s been dog sledding in northern New Hampshire, and four wheel drive and all that. So I think her vision is a four wheel drive now that we’re in like March, she’s thinking, well, maybe next year for that part. But where are you with vehicles right now? And what’s the I don’t want to say what’s the best way to go? I mean, obviously, I want people to go to you. But is it internet call coming? How do people deal with
Dennis Koulatsos 15:49
that? Well, you know, we’re we’re almost back to pre pandemic conditions in the sense that we have lots of inventory where we have close to 300 new vehicles on the stock and over 200 pre owned vehicles. So it’s back to the pre pandemic conditions in terms of availability, and pricing and things of that nature. So did you
Nestor Aparicio 16:07
never come back? Because I mean, you have not traveled enough to know, like, when you go to buy a car in San Francisco to show rooms, like, in the corner of a place of the slick loonies pub in Canton, you’re gonna mean like, A, that that there, that the show room would be different, or the lot would be different. The fact that it’s come back i I’m, I’m interested in that, because that had the freak you out to look out on that lot for a year and a half and not see cars, right? Yeah.
Dennis Koulatsos 16:30
When you have 30 acres versus, you know, one or two, that doesn’t make a difference. And when you see a barren 30 acre lot versus a lot, a lot of a lot of dealerships just don’t have the square footage that we do. So we’re blessed. In that sense. A lot of dealerships have off site lots. But here coons for Baltimore, we have we have 30 acres, and right now we’re almost we’re almost at capacity.
Nestor Aparicio 16:52
So the difference, the real difference. And this is for my wife, right, who’s old, and who didn’t want to order a car off the internet and needed to drive it. And I told you about the great lady up in Oakland, Maryland, that did a half an hour presentation for my wife, she should come work for you. Right? But but my wife would totally prefer and let me say something to you back because I’ll help you sell cars right now because it’s important. I’m in my daughter in law’s car and I got in and she’s got I don’t know the name of the car.
Dennis Koulatsos 17:18
It’s screaming. Remember to CMX SEMA is one of my, one of my favorite cars. Absolutely. It
Nestor Aparicio 17:24
first off when I went to steal it the other day in Dundalk. In the middle of night when I banged on the door and hope that the cops didn’t come in was happy. My kid doesn’t have a gun. It had this blue gas pump in it. Like out in front, right? And I’m like, my son, middle of the night. Give me the keys. Just take it that shirt off. This is my kid, right? And I’m like, it’s got a blue gas pump. What do I know how to do that? He’s like, Oh, hold on, he comes out shirt off takes the the gas pump out of the thing. And, and then I go to and I go to start it. And this was the truth. Right? I started five times because you don’t hear it start right Hi, hybrid, like I’ve rented on the road or whatever. But I forget like, how quiet they are. And this give me the name to see the feedbacks. See, it has a huge windshield. And you know, pi chi felt like a cab driver in London. Like I was in a carriage. Yeah, I felt you know, and I’m like, sort of like this. I told her that after driving, we drove to Essex Beach, John, but I sort of liked it. And I said you can see really well out of it. And now you told me you like it too. i i liked it after John. I thought to myself if this is inexpensive and less on gas, and you know, I would drive this I would look cool in this car.
Dennis Koulatsos 18:38
Yeah, it was one of my favorite demonstrators and I really love taking it to ravens game very easy to park 45 miles to the gallon. What’s there not to like, they don’t make that car anymore. It’s one of the vehicles I wish Ford would have kept around.
Nestor Aparicio 18:51
So I have to steal my daughter laws now. You have to steal it. Yeah.
Dennis Koulatsos 18:55
But it’s a great great another 15 years
Nestor Aparicio 18:58
damage changed all sorts of things right did well, Dennis, I’m gonna be talked about because I did want to tell you about it. Because like, the idea that my wife was gonna buy a car on mailorder. That’s just not she needs to get it and drive it. So
Dennis Koulatsos 19:16
some people do that. But yeah, most most people want to touch feel, drive the car, which and we have plenty of inventory of every model where customers can certainly do that. Yep, I like it to enjoy it. We want instant gratification. We want our vehicles right now. And look, some folks can wait to have sex and a secondary vehicle but most people don’t. So we have enough inventory to accommodate our public.
Nestor Aparicio 19:37
All right, well, I’m gonna borrow my daughter law’s car more often. It’s fun. It was fun. I had a good time driving her. I really saw the road well, and like that’s just different. I rent cars all the time and I had a I had a an SUV down in Florida for a day or two. So I get different cars and I liked them all gets me from A to B Be I’m very pragmatic about it, but I did like it. So nonetheless, the last thing for you have you notice baseball? Are you chirping a little bit? I mean,
Dennis Koulatsos 20:13
the Terps have it a lot of fun to watch the watch your victory against Purdue, a college park or watch the game the other day. They’re undefeated at home. Kevin Willard has done a phenomenal job. So I’ve been watching Trump’s basketball trips, lacrosse lacrosse season. Love to see as you said some more Orioles baseball. But unfortunately, the the home the home the home teams owners have in their wisdom, given us I believe five games we’ll take a look at which is insane.
Nestor Aparicio 20:40
Somebody wrote the other day, you know, just the day it started. I learned it’s probably when I was stuck at Chicago. I was checking things out. And somebody was you know, a big fan of the team wrote a little thing about spring training and not having to guess I wish I could see the games. And I wrote and I don’t mean to be a jerk. I mean, my walkout was 17 years ago now 17 years later, 17 years later, and this is still what they think of, of not you and me but them us. The great unwashed, the fans, they only deserve five is the whole premise of the organization when they stunk was always pitching. The younger kids. This the only time that they play until unless they go to buoy or Aberdeen for five minutes or go down in Norfolk or work, you know, whatever, right. And I wrote just one sentence and I don’t have any jerk left in me when it comes to Angelo’s like right like it the war’s over, as they say in regard to him. I do care about what happens next and these kids and but I said incompetence never takes a day off. Never. There’s never a day where I’ve seen incompetent people go on this streak for a while. We’re like, Oh, they’ve changed. They’ve changed their ways. They’re, I mean, especially the John Angelo’s like sitting down with the FM radio station when your flagships be like just crazy things going on. And but this stands among all of it because John always fancied himself the massing guy, right. John was always on the mass inside and understanding digital. Oh, they were always last in class. They were last to get HD. They they’re still don’t stream their games. They’re the only team that don’t doesn’t do that. They’re still fighting with it. But these are just simple, simple things like Dennis if you you and Mr. Koontz bought the team and you got together with me. The first thing you say is, we got to put the spring training games on TV. We got to sell tickets. This is how this is how we sell tickets. This is the album and then they come and see the tour in April. And then they’ll they’ll I
Dennis Koulatsos 22:49
think Do you think there’s a chance that the Orioles fan base would love to see all these number one draft picks they have playing together? Do you think that this fan base would like to see what the future looks like? You know, I’d love to see Jackson holiday. I like all these all these number one picks up they have Grayson Rodriguez, love to see all these guys playing right now. And maybe you want to buy more tickets and a 13 packet board for the season. Oh, you bought 13? What did? I did?
Nestor Aparicio 23:13
Huh? Am I gonna be the guy that goes with you that day at 430. When you can’t find anybody else to go with you? Absolutely. You think people are gonna really want to go?
Dennis Koulatsos 23:23
I think people want to go want to go, they should have a better year than last year we do. What do they win at seven games, nine the game money two games and people will come out to watch a winner they will support a winner and no one arise, you know, by the organization.
Nestor Aparicio 23:36
You know how much I love Luke. And I know how much you love Luke, you’re gonna have Luke on your show Thursday, he said to me, when I got into the baseball part of our conversation this week, they could have done more, they should have done more. Now just take that sentence. Could any day in there, whether it’s coons for Dennis, your salesperson, Mr. Coons, in your business, or my business for me to get that segment could have been better, I could have done more in that segment. I could have done more for my clients, I could have done more reading ads. I could have given more truth. I could have worked harder to go to the Superbowl to go to the through the things that I do. The fact that you could say that, that somebody like Luke, who’s very down and really wants them to do well, you know, I mean, he loves the Orioles. He understands their warts and all. He’s invested a lot more over the last 17 years than I have in the baseball team. But when his feeling is they could have done more, they should have done more. And it’s just such like, I don’t want to use the word crappy. I want to use the word the Essex word for the Dundalk word for that and say that is a crappy crappy sentiment for any walk of life to say my wife, my son, my church, my ran, they could have done more. They should have done more. They just didn’t. They just didn’t I that’s that’s just such an insult. If anybody said to me, I could have unmourned I should have done more. I would be joy. That’s a that’s a punch in the mouth is to me.
Dennis Koulatsos 25:06
How about the Padres? Right? They just extended Manny Machado. 11 years 350 million. You think they done more? You think your fan base is happy with the organization? They’re trying to win with Manny? Former Oreo Manny Machado.
Nestor Aparicio 25:22
Well, it’s really just it’s also weird to me because you mentioned Jackson Holliday and all these number ones, they’re bragging about their number one overall picks, and I’m thinking to myself, the reason you have number one overall picks, that’s because you let Manny Machado walk away and you’re the old man gave money to Chris Davis. And then you guys just sort of stopped caring for a while you blew it up. Like it needed to be blown up and everybody adores you for blowing it up. But like the fact that you ever have to blow it up and Mr. Coons have to blow up Koons for or if my ownership group has to blow up wn St. It doesn’t speak well for whatever you’ve been doing. Yeah, I agree. You know, I mean, like literally, um, all right, well, we’ll see you on Thursday from three to five and again on Sunday mornings as always having breakfast with Dennis crunch Baltimore Ford. You’ll never say that about me. And I’ll never say that about you. We could have done more. We should have done more. We’re doing plenty. We’re out there. We’re hanging out talking a lot of football. Get ready for Lamar, obviously lacrosse season and all that. Trump’s gonna win a couple games March Madness. They’re gonna make this fun, aren’t they?
Dennis Koulatsos 26:23
Yes, they are. Well, I’ll be tuning in for sure. Everybody loves the Terps.
Nestor Aparicio 26:28
Mayor lamb we’re all behind. Learning the songs man Absolutely. As bad as Glaxo’s. I am Esther. We are WNS da and 1570, Towson Baltimore. And we never stop talking Baltimore positive
