NY Jets safety Chuck Clark: ‘I was ready to get out of [Baltimore]’

New York Jets safety Chuck Clark knew the Baltimore Ravens would trade him

The Baltimore Ravens are a first-class organization, but that doesn’t mean every employee is jumping for joy. Chuck Clark was traded to the New York Jets back in March, and it was a welcome move for the former Virginia Tech man.

Clark confirmed in a media session on Tuesday that he requested a trade last season but it was agreed that the move would be made at the end of the year. He seemed eager about the upcoming trade, saying he was “ready to get out of there.”

As to the reasons for the trade request? A perceived lack of respect was shown by the Ravens for their starting safety.

“Just the situation that I was put in,” Clark said when asked why he wanted a trade. “The things that were said to me, and the position that I felt that I was on the team, I wasn’t being respected at the time.”

"I was ready to get out of there. The things that were said to me…I wasn't being respected."

Chuck Clark on being traded from the Ravens to the Jets: pic.twitter.com/b7KATurBub

— Jets Videos (@snyjets) May 23, 2023

Baltimore drafted Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton with the 14th overall pick in the 2022 draft, a month after signing former New Orleans Saints safety Marcus Williams to a five-year $70 million deal. It was obvious that Ravens GM Eric DeCosta felt as though Baltimore needed an injection of talent at the back end of the defense, but that wasn’t going to sit well with the players already there.

“I was a starter on the team. I’m not going to go too far into it, but as far as contract talks, money talks. There were some things that weren’t being respected,” Clark said.

Clark signed a three-year, $15.3 million contract extension. back in 2020. He’s moving into the final year of that deal in 2023.

Clark spent six years with the Ravens before finding his way to New York. In Baltimore, Clark was an extremely productive player when you consider he was a sixth-round draft pick. Even after requesting a trade last year, Clark started every game for Baltimore, amassing a career-high 101 tackles.