OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said he is “very confident” that quarterback Lamar Jackson will return to action this coming Thursday night when the Ravens visit the Miami Dolphins for a “Thursday Night Football” matchup.
“I feel very confident about it and would expect [Jackson] to be out there on Thursday night,” Harbaugh said after the team’s light indoor walkthrough workout on Oct. 27 at the Ravens’ Under Armour Performance Center.
“It was a great walk-through for him,” Harbaugh added. “He looked excellent.”
Jackson is probably especially motivated to return to the field at Miami, since he grew up in South Florida and still spends a lot of offseason time there.
Jackson has missed the past three games with a hamstring injury. He returned to practice last week after the Ravens bye week, and optimism grew that he would return this past Sunday against the Chicago Bears, especially after Jackson was reported to be a full practice participant on Friday.
But the next day, the Ravens revised his practice status, describing him as “limited” on Friday, and ruled him out for the game.
Tyler Huntley took Jackson’s place in the starting lineup and produced one of the best games of his career in leading the Ravens to a critical 30-16 win that snapped a four-game losing streak.
The Ravens (2-5) are trying to remain in contention in an AFC North that looks increasingly flawed this season. The other three teams in the division all lost in Week 8, leaving the Ravens’ path to a division title still very much in play despite their 1-5 start that ties the worst six-game start in franchise history.
Beginning with Miami (2-6), the Ravens play five straight games against teams that have losing records entering Week 9.
The Ravens are 11-5 playing on “Thursday Night Football” under John Harbaugh — 9-0 at home and 2-5 on the road. That road record includes a 22-10 loss at Miami in 2021.
NOTEBOOK
HARBAUGH: NO WORD FROM LEAGUE ON INJURY SNAFU: Harbaugh said he had not been in touch with the league office regarding the change in Jackson’s injury designation, which he had deemed an “honest mistake” when asked about it after the Bears game.
According to a statement released by the team a day earlier, Jackson had participated fully in practice on Friday but only with the scout team. According to the league’s injury-report guidelines, a starter who works with the scout team must be listed as “limited” even if he practices fully.
Harbaugh said the team medical staff and PR staff compile the injury report, and once the team became aware of the discrepancy and the reporting rules, they notified the league.
Still, teams in the past have been fined for erroneous or misleading information on injury reports, and there is speculation the league will punish the Ravens for inaccurate injury reporting.
Asked on Monday about that possibility, Harbaugh said, “I don’t talk to the league about that. I think we put a statement out about that and how it works, and that’s really, that’s all I know.”
LAWSON COULD PLAY THURSDAY: Harbaugh said that defensive end Carl Lawson, who was signed to the practice squad last week, could be elevated to the gameday roster as soon as this week against Miami.
“It’s possible, yes,” he said. “We’ll be talking about that, probably, today and tomorrow.”
The Ravens are especially light at the edge rush position after trading Odafe Oweh and losing Tavius Robinson for at least a month with a foot injury. Against Chicago, the Ravens had just three edge rushers in uniform in Kyle Van Noy, Mike Green and David Ojabo. The Ravens used inside linebacker Trenton Simpson in spots on the outside, and also relied on defensive backs Marlon Humphrey and Kyle Hamilton to apply pressure on blitzes from the slot.
Lawson, 30, hasn’t played since last season, when he was with the Dallas Cowboys. He totaled five sacks in 15 games with the Cowboys and had seven sacks in 2022 with the New York Jets. Lawson was already plenty familiar with the Ravens after playing his first four seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, who drafted Lawson in the fourth round in 2017.
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