Lamar Jackson did not travel to Cincinnati to be with his Ravens teammates on contract disputes

Lamar Jackson has fueled speculation about his future with the Baltimore Ravens after reports he opted not to travel to Cincinnati with the team for Sunday’s playoff loss to the Bengals.

Star quarterback Jackson is injured and unable to play in the wild card match-up, but it came as a surprise that he didn’t travel with the team, NBC’s Melissa Stark reported ahead of kick-off.

Jackson, 26, is currently in a contractual impasse with the Ravens after negotiations were called off earlier in the season so the team could focus on the season.

Lamar Jackson’s future with the Baltimore Ravens remains unclear after staying at home

Jackson is injured, but it came as a surprise that he didn’t choose to travel to Cincinnati for the playoffs

Now that their campaign is over after the Cincinnati loss, attention will likely turn to the quarterback’s future and whether he stays in Baltimore or continues his impressive career away from the team that drafted him in the first round in 2018.

His decision not to travel with the team will certainly increase speculation about a move elsewhere as he looks for a big deal in his prime.

It was previously reported that Jackson is pushing for a contract closer to Deshaun Watson’s with the Cleveland Browns after being handed a five-year, $230 million, fully guaranteed contract.

In fact, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti was the first NFL boss to publicly criticize Watson’s deal, though Jackson has since insisted he’s “a man of his own” and won’t be affected by other contracts.

Jim Harbaugh will have to wait and see if his star quarterback stays in the franchise

Jackson notoriously has no agent and has negotiated for himself in talks with the Ravens throughout his career.

The quarterback has not played a game since Dec. 4 when he injured his left knee against the Denver Broncos.

He was originally named Week-by-Week by head coach John Harbaugh and was set to return before the end of the regular season.

That was then postponed, and Jackson posted on Twitter Thursday to suggest he would be unavailable for Sunday night’s game.

Deshaun Watson’s five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract changed the quarterback market

In his message, he wrote: “Thank you all for your support and concern regarding my injuries. I want to give you all an update as I am in the recovery process.

“I sustained a grade 2 PCL sprain bordering on a trunk grade 3. My knee is still inflamed and my knee remains unstable. I am still in good spirits as I continue with treatments on the road to recovery.

“I wish I could be out there with my boys more than anything, but I can’t give 100% of myself to my boys and fans. I still hope we have another chance.”

However, if Jackson can’t come to terms with the Ravens now, he may have played his last game for the franchise.

From the looks of it, he’s going into the offseason without a contract, while the Ravens could still use their franchise tag to keep him on their books.