Jackson once again misses practice
QB out for 16th straight session, dampening hopes for return
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was absent from practice again Wednesday, dampening hopes that he might return to start the team’s playoff opener Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.
As the Ravens prepare to play without their superstar, speculation around Jackson’s future with the team will rev up. He’s about to become a free agent, and fans from other cities are already choking social media with trade proposals for the 2019 NFL Most Valuable Player.
Jackson has not practiced or played since he suffered a knee injury in the first quarter of the Ravens’ 10-9 victory over the Denver Broncos on the first weekend of December. Though Ravens coach John Harbaugh initially said the injury was not season-ending and expressed optimism that Jackson would be back for the playoffs as recently as two weeks ago, he never put a definite timeline
on his franchise quarterback’s recovery.
“I don’t really have anything to add on that,” Harbaugh said Wednesday when asked if Jackson will miss the wild-card round.
On Monday he said: “Lamar has been in great spirits. He’s been working super hard. He was out there again today. I mean, I don’t watch the workouts. He’s with the trainers, and hopefully, it’s progressing to the point where he can get to practice sometime soon. That’s what we’re all hoping for, for sure.”
With Jackson’s availability for the playoff game in doubt, questions will turn to backup Tyler Huntley, who missed Sunday’s regular-season finale in Cincinnati after he was limited in practice by shoulder and wrist injuries. Huntley practiced Wednesday, again as a limited participant.
“He’s doing a lot better,” Harbaugh said. “He was out there at practice today and took a bunch of plays, so he had a good day. I’d say he’s on schedule.”
At the end of last week Huntley said he had a “good chance to play,” so perhaps Harbaugh simply held him out for precautionary reasons. He also did not use running back J.K. Dobbins, tight end Mark Andrews or right guard Kevin Zeitler against the Bengals. Undrafted rookie Anthony Brown started at quarterback and turned the ball over three times in the first half to help Cincinnati build a 24-7 lead on the way to a 27-16 victory.