The Baltimore Ravens have officially ruled Lamar Jackson out for Sunday’s Week 8 game against the Chicago Bears. The Ravens will reportedly start Tyler Huntley at quarterback instead.
Jackson, Baltimore’s two-time NFL MVP who will now miss his third straight game with a hamstring injury he suffered against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 28, is expected to return to the field Thursday night in Week 9 versus the Miami Dolphins, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
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Schefter also reported Saturday that, even though Jackson practiced Friday, he wasn’t ready to play against the Bears in a game that comes with a tight turnaround, given the Ravens have a short week and a road trip to Miami coming up.
Additionally, Jackson’s Friday practice status was downgraded from “full” to “limited,” the team announced Saturday. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported earlier Saturday that Jackson ran the scout team on Friday.
Rapoport then reported Saturday evening that the NFL will look into the Ravens’ practice and participation situation. The league, according to Rapoport, “reviews any matter involving a change to a player’s status.”
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The Ravens released a statement on the subject Saturday:
“Lamar Jackson was present for and participated fully in our entire Friday practice ahead of Sunday’s game against the Bears,” the team’s statement reads.
“Upon further evaluation today and after conferring with the league office, because Lamar didn’t take starter reps in practice, we updated our report to reflect his practice participation.”
[Get more Ravens news: Baltimore team feed]
Jackson made his return to practice this week after Baltimore’s Week 7 bye. He was replaced by backup quarterback Cooper Rush against the Chiefs during the third quarter of a 37-20 loss in Week 4.
That defeat dropped an injury-riddled Ravens team to 1-3 at the time. Baltimore was outscored 61-13 over the next two games, each of which Rush started.
After going 4-4 in place of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott last season, Rush has struggled mightily with the Ravens this season. So much so that he was benched for Huntley amid a 17-3 embarrassment to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 6.
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Baltimore signed Huntley from its practice squad to its 53-man roster Friday.
Huntley started 10 games in Jackson’s absence during his four-season stay with the Ravens from 2020-23, including a playoff game during the 2022 season.
That season, Huntley went 2-2 down the stretch of the regular season and ended up earning a spot in the Pro Bowl.
Last season, the former undrafted free agent out of Utah started five games for the Dolphins. He posted five total touchdowns while going 2-3.