Happy Tuesday, friend.

The 2023 NFL Scouting Combine is in the books and free agency rumors are heating up. Baseball things are happening (hello, World Baseball Classic!) and NBA chaos/drama remain aplenty.

Sports are sports-ing and I’m on cloud nine.

You know who’s probably not on cloud nine? Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, who didn’t get his long-term contract by Tuesday’s deadline. There’s a lot of drama to unpack with the latest news out of Baltimore — let’s dive in.

The Ravens fumbled the bag with Lamar Jackson.

As expected, the Ravens placed the non-exclusive franchise tag on Jackson after failing to reach a long-term contract extension.

The weirdest part of this situation isn't that the two sides didn't reach a deal. It lies in the fact that they applied a non-exclusive franchise tag.

A non-exclusive franchise tag is a fancy way of saying that Jackson is free to negotiate a contract with other teams, but Baltimore would have the opportunity to match any contract offer Jackson receivers.

If they match the offer, Jackson remains with the Ravens on the terms offered by the outside team.

If they decide not to match the offer, Jackson would leave the team on his new deal, and the Ravens would receive two first-round picks as compensation (almost definitely an underwhelming package vs. what they’d receive if they traded him themselves).

Here are all of the reasons why they might have done this and why none of them bode well.

• They'll save lots of money. If Lamar Jackson plays under the non-exclusive franchise tag, he would earn a total of $32.416 million guaranteed in 2023. Under the exclusive franchise tag, Jackson would’ve earned upward of $45 million.
  

• Jackson making less money means he'll be more motivated to get a long-term deal done at a later date. That coooould mean (aka, the Ravens might be hoping) Jackson would take a deal he otherwise wouldn't have previously agreed to just to avoid playing on a low-ball, 1-year deal in 2023. Good luck with that, though.
  

• Jackson has a chance to prove his value on the market. The Ravens are hoping his contract demands will seem outrageous to other teams (they're not).
  

• The Ravens are saying they’re okay with losing him. The exclusive franchise tag could have kept Lamar Jackson off the market entirely. They didn’t use it. Hope they have a backup plan.
  

• The Ravens have little faith Jackson, who’s representing himself without an agent, will be able to secure the deal he wants. On one hand, there should be no shortage of suitors looking to sign Jackson as a young franchise quarterback. On the other, if he isn't a great negotiator, the threat of those other franchises doesn't really matter.

It's icky vibes all around.

I’m #TeamPayLamar. I just wish the Ravens were, too.

Bet on Lamar Jackson to win NFL MVP in 2023.

Who loves rooting for an underdog? I do, I do! I also love when said underdog has already proven himself as a certified baller. Though Jackson’s future (whether that be with the Ravens, or elsewhere) is very much up in the air, we already know he’s capable of winning NFL MVP… cause he’s already done it.

Lamar Jackson’s odds to win NFL MVP are at +1400… meaning a $10 bet on him would yield $140 in profit (plus your original $10 back) if he wins!

Lamar Jackson isn’t the only QB with contract news…

🏀 Game of the day 🏀

Who: Philadelphia 76ers vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
When: Tuesday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m. ET
How to watch: TNT or via live stream 

Gaming Society’s Game of the Day Parlay 👀

Key reminders as you place your bets — courtesy of The Betting Academy 🫡

☑️ A parlay is a wager comprised of multiple bets that ALL need to happen in order for your bet slip to cash! Each individual bet within a parlay is known as a “leg” — weird, right? 🍗 If just one of the “legs” in our parlay doesn’t hit, we don’t win our bet.

☑️ Your payout for any given bet depends on the odds. In the case of a parlay, your potential payout is calculated by combining the odds of each individual bet. The payout is always bigger for a parlay than it is for each individual bet, though! More risk = more reward.

☑️ Today’s parlay features odds from our game of the day, Sixers vs. Timberwolves! Get your bets in by tip-off (scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET) in order to get in on the action. Now, onto our bet of the day.

📱Social moments that altered my brain chemistry this week📱

That time OKC Thunder guard Jalen Williams took things personally.

In his last six, Jalen Williams is averaging 23.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game. 😤 Fine, maybe I’ll add him to my parlay.

🤕 OL prospect Andrew Vorhees tore his ACL at the Combine…

That didn’t stop him from competing, though. He closed out his weekend by competing in the bench press — with one bum leg, mind you! — and finished with 38 reps at 225 pounds to lead all combine participants.

Whatever NFL team drafts this kid knows exactly what they’re getting — AN ABSOLUTE FIGHTER. 😤 You love to see it.

Get well soon, Andrew!

The NBA won’t let Giannis get greedy.

Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo was one rebound short of a triple-double in Sunday night’s game against the Wizards. He remedied that in the final seconds of the game by “attempting” a shot and rebounding the basket prior to the clock expiring. Boom, triple-double accomplished!

Except that it wasn’t. The NBA won’t be swindled.

It was a good try, Giannis. 🤓 A for effort.

⬇️ Vote on whether or not the Giannis rebound should have counted ⬇️

FWIW, odds for Giannis to have a triple-double tonight against the Magic are locked (as of the time of this writing!) 🔒 This means sportsbooks aren’t taking bets on it for the time being. Is it because they know he’ll bounce back with a real triple-double this time??? Let us bet on it, you cowards!

🌈 Betting Academy meme of the day 🌈

Did you know? 💡 A player prop is a bet on a player's performance outcome. The most comment types of player props are usually “over/under” wagers — like, “Will Joel Embiid have over or under 9.5 rebounds tonight against the Timberwolves?”

Those aren’t the only kinds of player props available, though! Some less-common types of player props include:

• Bets on players to record a double-double or triple-double. Odds for Anthony Edwards to record his eighth triple-double of the season tonight are at +700, meaning a $10 bet would win $70 profit if he hits the mark.

• Wagers on who will score the first basket (and how). As you can probably guess, these are super hard to predict, so the payouts are much bigger. For example, odds for Anthony Edwards to score the first basket of the Sixers-Wolves game with a three-pointer are at +1700.

• “Combos” — which combine two or more different stat categories into one. For example, will Joel Embiid have over or under 47.5 points, rebounds and assists combined against the Timberwolves?

Learn more about the basics of sports betting, including key terms to know, over at The Betting Academy!

Before you go, check out some more cool things we’ve been workin’ on!