The Baltimore Ravens earned an impressive 30-23 overtime victory at the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night with backup quarterback Tyler Huntley starting in place of Baltimore star Lamar Jackson, who was nursing the ankle injury he suffered on Oct. 4.
A previous report shared that Jackson could be dealing with “a multiple-week” issue that could sideline him through at least Baltimore’s Week 6 game at the 3-2 Cleveland Browns on Oct. 18. During a Monday appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter suggested that Jackson was closer to playing against the Falcons than people knew when the two-time regular-season MVP was ruled out for the Week 5 matchup.
Browns have “realistic chance” of facing Lamar Jackson in Week 6
According to Schefter, “there was some hope earlier in the week last week” that Jackson was going to be able to play against the Falcons.
Baltimore ultimately didn’t need Jackson, as Huntley completed 24-of-32 passes for 201 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Huntley also scored what became a game-winning touchdown on a quarterback sneak in the contest’s overtime period.
“Knowing the things that I heard last week,” Schefter added about Jackson, “my sense is that he is gonna have a realistic chance to play” against the Browns.
Will Ravens have a new face in the lineup for the Browns game?
Meanwhile, the Ravens made a big splash last week when they acquired two-time Pro Bowl center Cam Jurgens from the Philadelphia Eagles. Jurgens did not play for the Ravens against the Falcons, but Schefter said during Monday’s “McAfee Show” segment that Baltimore expects Jurgens to make his official team debut versus the Browns.
Shortly after Schefter offered his updates, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the 4-1 Ravens as 4.5-point road favorites over a Browns side that is coming off a tough 17-12 loss at the New York Jets on Sunday. Baltimore ended the weekend as the only AFC North team with four wins on the season, and it now sounds like Jackson may only miss one game due to a setback that seemed to be quite worrisome as of Friday afternoon.