Though it’s been safe to assume from the moment the Baltimore Ravens locked up the AFC’s No. 1 seed with their Sunday win over the Miami Dolphins, head coach John Harbaugh announced QB Lamar Jackson won’t play in Saturday’s regular-season finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers. QB Tyler Huntley will start instead.
“All things considered, it seemed to be the right thing to do,” Harbaugh told reporters Wednesday via the team’s YouTube channel.
With nothing to play for except spoiling Pittsburgh’s playoff hopes, Baltimore will take advantage of the luxuries the top seed provides. They’ll be the only AFC team with a bye week and will have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Not wanting to risk injury is an obvious reason why key players will sit but the Ravens are also dealing with several injuries, especially in their secondary.
At quarterback, Jackson will give way to Huntley, who will make his first start of the season. Huntley has made nearly as many starts against Pittsburgh as Jackson (Huntley has three, Jackson has four) making each side familiar with each other. His last start came in Week 17 of 2022, finishing 14-of-21 for 130 yards with a touchdown and interception as Pittsburgh won, 16-13, in Baltimore. This year, Huntley has played sparingly as Jackson has stayed healthy, attempting nine passes all year. He did toss a 19-yard touchdown in last week’s blowout of Miami.
Harbaugh also noted that rookie QB Malik Cunningham will dress and “be a factor,” on special teams. Cunningham went through wide receiver drills during today’s practice, indicating that the Ravens may use him in different roles against the Steelers. Cunningham was previously with the New England Patriots before Baltimore signed him off their practice squad.
Beyond Jackson and CB Daryl Worley, the latter due to injury, Harbaugh didn’t rule out any other players for this game. Still, it’s logical for other key names to sit for the Ravens. That includes S Kyle Hamilton, who missed last week with a knee injury. It would also be a surprise to see the likes of the team’s top inside linebackers, Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen, play while OG Kevin Zeitler is expected to sit for Ben Cleveland.
Pittsburgh and Baltimore kick off at 4:30 PM/EST. If the Steelers win, a loss by the Jacksonville Jaguars or Buffalo Bills will put Pittsburgh in the postseason. If the Steelers lose, they can still get in if the Jaguars lose, the Denver Broncos win, and the Indianapolis Colts-Houston Texans game doesn’t end in a tie.
