While the Ravens remain in Lamar Jackson limbo, they’re busy making other moves -- including a trade that will clear valuable salary-cap space.
Baltimore will ship safety Chuck Clark to the New York Jets in exchange for a seventh-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Thursday.
Clark, 28, has started for the past three years for the Ravens, signing a three-year extension in 2020 for $15.3 million. He’ll arrive in New York with one year left on that deal.
By trading Clark, the Ravens will save $4.14 million against the cap while taking a dead-money hit of $2.63 million, according to Over The Cap. Prior to the trade, the Ravens were more than $9 million over the 2023 cap.
The writing was on the wall when the Ravens used their 2022 first-round pick on Kyle Hamilton. Clark logged a career-high 101 tackles in 2022, starting all 17 regular-season games. In his career, he has five interceptions (one run back for a touchdown), 3.5 sacks, five forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries and 32 pass breakups.
For the Jets, this trade could help offset the potential losses of free agents Lamarcus Joyner and Will Parks. Jordan Whitehead is also slated to hit the cap at more than $10 million in 2023.