With the Ravens reeling, QB Lamar Jackson is still not practicing coming out of a bye. Having injured his hamstring in Week 4, the assumption was he would be back following the bye. The fact that he didn’t practice yesterday, however, doesn’t mean he won’t play this week. After all, we’re talking about a “bonus” Monday practice—but it’s still not a good sign.
It also doesn’t help that Ravens HC John Harbaugh was cagey when discussing Jackson specifically. Asked if he anticipates Jackson practicing this week, he made a general comment, saying he doesn’t want to discuss individual players. When asked in another way, he replied, “Same answer”.
After that, Ravens beat writers respected the flow and didn’t ask about Jackson anymore. They did ask Zay Flowers about him, though. The wide receiver admitted he didn’t know Jackson’s health situation despite talking to him daily.
In the Ravens’ first three-plus games, Lamar Jackson was off to another strong season. By the time of his injury, he was 68-of-95 for 869 yards with 10 touchdown passes to 1 interception. I believe he led the NFL in touchdown passes at the time and is still first in touchdown percentage. He has a career-high 9.1 yards per attempt with a 130.5 passer rating.
With or without him, however, Baltimore hasn’t been winning. The Ravens lost by one point with Lamar Jackson against the Bills, then by eight against the Lions. While they annihilated the hapless Browns in Week 2, they lost, 37-20, to the Chiefs.
Jackson was injured in the middle of the third quarter against the Chiefs, by which point the Ravens were already down 27-13. They only played the final 16 minutes without him, the offense producing one touchdown.
As you might guess, the Ravens are even worse without Jackson. In the two games since his injury, they have scored all of 13 points. They did hold the Rams to 17 points in their final game before the bye, but only after having allowed 44 to the Texans a week earlier.
Despite Jackson’s injury, the Ravens still rank 16th in scoring but 32nd in defensive scoring. It’s the defense that has been the problem in Baltimore, yet no changes have been made there. They have had a lot of injuries, however, and almost everybody but their quarterback did return to practice.
Coming out of the bye, the Ravens sit at 1-5, tied for the fifth-worst record in the NFL. It’s tied for the worst start in franchise history, but they are equipped to rebound. Yes, they went 1-3 with Lamar Jackson but getting him back means they can score points. Even a competent showing from the defense gives them a chance to win any week against any team. And with the way the Steelers just looked against the Bengals, the AFC North feels like it’s still in play. But the Ravens need Jackson back first—and he’s not back yet.
