Ravens, WR Zay Flowers agree to lucrative 4-year extension: source

Brian Wacker, The Baltimore Sun on Aug 4, 2026

Published in Football

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BALTIMORE — During the first round of the 2023 draft, Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta got a few calls about trading back from the 22nd overall pick. But he liked Zay Flowers, thought there would be a run on wide receivers and former great Steve Smith Sr.’s high opinion of Flowers weeks earlier had resonated.

More than three years later, he’s now one of the highest-paid players in the sport at his position.

Flowers agreed to a four-year contract extension with Baltimore, the team announced Tuesday. The deal is worth $140 million, with $108 million guaranteed, according to a source with direct knowledge of the move. It also makes him the fourth-highest-paid receiver in the NFL behind the Seattle Seahawks’ Jaxon Smith-Njigba ($42.15 million per year), the Cincinnati Bengals’ Ja’Marr Chase ($40.25 million) and the Atlanta Falcons’ Drake London ($35.3 million).

“Zay is the type of player we always seek to retain,” general manager Eric DeCosta said in a statement. “Tough, competitive, durable, a premier talent and a foundational football player.”

The extension makes him the second-highest paid player in the organization’s history behind quarterback Lamar Jackson and comes after the team had picked up Flowers’ fifth-year option in April. It also ensures Jackson’s favorite target will remain in town for the long haul.

Flowers and Jackson have developed a close friendship over the past four years, and the wide receiver position is one the Ravens have long struggled to develop.

First-year coach Jesse Minter called it a “great day for the Ravens” following practice. He also gave Flowers the day off for what he called a “life-changing” moment. Flowers, who watched from the sideline and is expected back on the field on Wednesday, was not made available to reporters and is expected to speak on Wednesday.

“We love Zay. We need Zay,” Jackson said in June when asked about his fellow Flowers’ value to the team. “His value is out of this world. That’s what I’d say.”

Flowers, who will turn 26 in September, has certainly proven valuable to Jackson and the Ravens.

In his first three years, he has 3,128 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns. He has led the team in receptions and receiving yards each of the past two years. Last season, his 1,211 receiving yards were the most in franchise history and accounted for nearly 37% of the team’s receiving yards, ranking behind only Smith-Njigba (44.1%).

Flowers is also the organization’s first homegrown receiver to be selected to a Pro Bowl, something that happened each of the past two years. He also ranks 10th among wide receivers in yards and 13th in catches since entering the league and already ranks fifth in franchise history in receiving yards and receptions after just three seasons.

The former Boston College standout has likewise been as productive as he has been tough.

He has averaged 13.2 yards per catch for his career and missed just one regular season game due to injury. He also has a reputation for being one of the team’s hardest workers on and off the field.

Still, the 5-foot-9, 183-pound former first-round draft pick has had his share of gaffes.

Flowers has three career fumbles, and all have come in critical moments. His most costly came during the fourth quarter of the AFC championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs in his rookie year when he lost the ball trying to extend it over the goal line in what ended up being an eventual 17-7 loss.

Last season, he coughed it up twice, first in a crucial Week 13 division game against the Cincinnati Bengals, then in an important Week 16 tilt against the New England Patriots. The Ravens lost both.

His lack of size has also raised questions about whether he is a true No. 1 receiver, a notion Jackson has scoffed at.

When asked about it earlier this offseason, the quarterback shook his head in disbelief and threw his hand up in disgust.

“Zay Flowers is a 1,000-yard receiver [in the] NFL for a reason,” he said. “I’m going to leave it at that.”

He has also been one of the best from his draft class, with only Los Angeles Rams’ Puka Nacua and Smith-Njigba putting up more receiving yards.

Minter, who was the Los Angeles Chargers’ defensive coordinator the past two seasons, said that Flowers has developed into one of the “pillars of the organization” because of his leadership. He also said that he is difficult to prepare for “because he has the capabilities and the skillset to play all over the offense.”

“You can’t cover him in man, and he’s getting better at finding areas in zone, and his [run after catch ability] is up there with the best,” Ravens All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton said earlier this summer. “I can honestly say he’s probably the quickest, shiftiest guy that I’ve ever seen with my own two eyes.”

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