OWINGS MILLS, Md. — John Harbaugh relayed “good news” on the sprained right ankle that forced Lamar Jackson out of Sunday’s 24-22 loss in Cleveland.
Whether the star quarterback will be able to play in the Week 15 clash with Green Bay remains to be seen, but Harbaugh said Jackson did not sustain a high ankle sprain, which typically leads to a multi-week absence. Jackson was injured on the opening play of the second quarter and left FirstEnergy Stadium wearing a walking boot on his right foot after Baltimore’s second straight loss.
But Harbaugh said Monday that he’s anticipating Jackson playing against the Packers.
“The plans are right now, in my mind, for Lamar to be out there,” Harbaugh said Monday afternoon. “We’ll see where it goes this week. If he can go, he’ll go. If not, Tyler [Huntley] will be the quarterback. That’s where we’re at.”
Of course, the question is how much Jackson can practice and how close to 100% he’ll be to inform a decision on his status. At any other point over the last few seasons, few would have suggested that the 24-year-old would need to practice in order to play in a game, but Jackson is in the midst of the biggest slump of his four-year career with 10 interceptions and a 73.5 passer rating over his last seven games. There’s also the matter of how much the ankle might hinder his mobility since he relies on his legs much more than more conventional quarterbacks who rarely leave the pocket.
Huntley has performed well enough in close to two full games over the last four weeks to debate whether he might be the better option than a diminished Jackson who wasn’t playing his best football even before the injury.
It’s sure to be an interesting week as the first-place Ravens try to avoid a third straight loss with Cincinnati and Cleveland trailing by just one game in the AFC North.
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Harbaugh provided a number of other injury and personnel updates during his Monday press conference:
— Defensive end Calais Campbell is dealing with a “soft-tissue” thigh injury that forced him out in the first quarter of Sunday’s loss. The Ravens will go “day to day on that” and see how he’s feeling by week’s end.
— Wide receiver Sammy Watkins played just 23 snaps before exiting with a knee issue and “just didn’t feel like he could go on it during the game.” That led to an increased snap count for rookie first-round Rashod Bateman, who set season highs with seven catches for 103 yards.
— Inactive for Sunday’s game, fullback Patrick Ricard underwent an MRI for his knee that brought “good news” on Monday. The Ravens are “kind of expecting to have him next week.”
— Tight end Nick Boyle hasn’t been able to play in the last two games with his surgically-repaired left knee still giving him problems, but Harbaugh believes there’s a “good chance” Boyle will return to play against Green Bay.
— Veteran safety Tony Jefferson is reuniting with the Ravens, agreeing to sign to the practice squad after working out for the team on Monday. The 29-year-old played for Baltimore from 2017-19 and appeared in two games for San Francisco last month.
