When your franchise quarterback sits out four games in a single season due to injury, you cannot treat the backup spot as an afterthought. The Baltimore Ravens learned that lesson in 2025 with Lamar Jackson. And this offseason, they are refusing to make the same mistake twice.

After turning to Cooper Rush to fill in for Jackson, a move that resulted in two losses, the Baltimore Ravens had to shift their confidence to Tyler Huntley. And thankfully, it paid off both short-term and long-term. Not only did the 28-year-old win his two starts last season against the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers, both playoff teams, but the promise he showed has also guaranteed his place at M&T Bank Stadium.

As per NFL insider Adam Schefter, days before the quarterback was set to hit unrestricted free agency on Monday, Baltimore has agreed to bring him back on a two-year deal worth up to $11 million to the team.

Notably, according to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, the agreement carries a base value of $5 million and could climb to $11 million with incentives. At roughly $2.5 million per season, it represents strong value for a reliable, experienced backup quarterback. And why not? Huntley has shown he can keep the Baltimore Ravens competitive even when their starting quarterback is unavailable, making him arguably one of the NFL’s most valuable backups.

Take last October’s 30-16 win versus the Bears, for example, where Huntley threw for 186 yards, scored a touchdown, and also ran for 53 yards. Then, in a must-win game against the Packers in December, which the Ravens won 41-24, the signal caller completed 80% of his passes (16 of 20), threw for 107 yards and also scored a touchdown. Yet, many agree that his deal comes as a surprise, as the franchise has never been interested in spending heavily on the backup spot.

This leads to just one important question: Did the Ravens make a good decision with Tyler Huntley?

Here’s the thing: A reliable backup will always be in demand in the league. But the supply for this demand is sparse. So, Huntley could have found a higher-paying opportunity elsewhere. But the fact that the Ravens retained him successfully will help with continuity. All that said, the positives don’t end here.

Huntley is close friends with Lamar Jackson. In fact, after Schefter broke the news of Huntley’s new deal, journalist Carita Parks took to X and mentioned how the backup wanted to stay in Baltimore to support Jackson.

“Snoop told me last season during our 1-on-1 that he just wanted to be in Baltimore to support his “brother” Lamar Jackson. He never made it about himself. Now he gets the deal he deserves and will continue his journey with Lamar,” she wrote on X.

Huntley is also well-regarded within the organization for his professionalism and calm approach. Another key factor is his familiarity with the offense. He can step in and run a scheme tailored to Jackson’s unique skill set without forcing the coaching staff to significantly alter the game plan.

At 28, the quarterback has spent most of his NFL career with the Ravens, serving as a backup in five of his six seasons. His only campaign away from Baltimore came in 2024 with the Miami Dolphins, where he stepped in for Tua Tagovailoa and made five starts. Huntley also had offseason stints with the Cleveland Browns during both 2024 and 2025. Further, his stats show he has been reliable.

Over six NFL seasons, he has appeared in 30 games and made 16 starts. During that span, he threw for 3,212 yards with 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while completing 66.2 percent of his passes. He has also contributed on the ground, rushing for 795 yards and five touchdowns.

With a championship window blown open, the Ravens are making sure they have a reliable quarterback if Jackson goes down again. But Tyler Huntley’s new deal is only the surface. Underneath it lies a far more complicated conversation Baltimore needs to have soon.

Lamar Jackson’s contract shadow over Baltimore

Lamar Jackson’s 2026 cap hit stands at $74.5 million, the second highest in the NFL. Baltimore could restructure Jackson’s deal, converting cash into bonus money and clearing more than $30 million in immediate cap space. But that move would push Jackson’s 2027 cap number even higher, making it an unavoidable headache. The Ravens want neither outcome.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, general manager Eric DeCosta was clear in his expectations: a deal will soon take place.

“Lamar and I have an agreement: we handle business kind of in-house internally,” DeCosta noted. “That worked well for us the last time, and we will continue to have that policy moving forward.”

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As for the timeline, DeCosta believes a post March 11 contract restructure could definitely be in the books.

“I think we never have as much cap room as we would like to have, but we feel like we can start at the beginning of the new league year and conduct business,” DeCosta had said.

The financial bar is Dak Prescott’s four-year, $240 million deal, averaging $60 million per year. Any new deal for Jackson would have to help make him the highest-paid quarterback in the league. With $104 million cash still remaining on his current deal, Jackson holds leverage, but has stayed publicly silent on negotiations.

Other teams like the Cleveland Browns, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Dallas Cowboys have already restructured their QB contracts to build weapons for 2026. Now, Baltimore joins the hunt under first-year head coach Jesse Minter.

The Ravens are betting big on another deep playoff run. Keeping Tyler Huntley was the straightforward, smart call. Getting Lamar Jackson locked in long term: that’s the real $74.5 million question now.