Ravens: Lamar’s injury won’t end QB’s season

BALTIMORE — Lamar Jackson‘s knee injury is not a season-ending one, but there is no definitive timetable for the Pro Bowl quarterback’s return, coach John Harbaugh said after the Baltimore Ravens‘ 10-9 victory over the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

Jackson is scheduled to undergo more testing Monday. Harbaugh said the team would know by Wednesday at the latest on how long Jackson will be sidelined.

“It’s going to be a number [of] days to weeks. We’ll see,” Harbaugh said. “We’ll see if he can go back this week. If not, it’ll be sometime after that shortly.”

Like last year, Jackson was injured while trying to elude the pass rush. And, like last season, he was injured in December when the Ravens sat atop the AFC North standings.

On Sunday, Jackson was hurt on the final play of the first quarter when he was sacked from behind by Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper. It appeared as if Jackson’s left knee was driven into the ground as Cooper landed on top of his back. After being evaluated in the medical tent, Jackson walked without a limp to the locker room with the medical staff at the start of the second quarter and was ruled out at the start of the second half.

This marks the first time that Jackson has missed any snaps since last season, when he injured an ankle in Week 14. The Ravens, who were 8-4 at the time, lost their last five games with Jackson sidelined and missed the playoffs.

This season, Jackson has led Baltimore to first place in the AFC North. The Ravens improved to 8-4 with Sunday’s victory.

“There were plenty of times where guys could have said, ‘Poor me, poor me,’ but guys kept fighting and fighting and fighting,” Ravens tight end Mark Andrews said. “Then, finally [we] broke through at the very end. That’s awesome to see.”

Filling in for Jackson, backup quarterback Tyler Huntley led a game-winning, 91-yard drive in the final minutes of regulation. Huntley was 8-for-8 for 50 yards on the final drive and scored on a 2-yard touchdown run with 28 seconds remaining.

Asked about his mindset if Jackson misses more games because of injury, Huntley said, “Just like every week — just prepare. That’s about it. That’s all to it.”

Huntley finished 27-of-32 for 187 yards with an interception in his first snaps of the season. Last season, he kept Baltimore competitive filling in for Jackson, but he was 1-3 as a starter.

“He just has so much confidence,” Andrews said of Huntley. “You see the way he plays. Things weren’t perfect, but for him to be able to come in — especially that last drive — and do what he did, and have the composure that he had, just shows you how good he really is, how much he’s learned. I’m thinking about Lamar, but you have to tip your hat to ‘Snoop’ [Huntley] [and] just how well he played. It’s impressive football.”

Jackson has been battling injuries recently. He missed one practice two weeks ago with a hip injury and was limited for one practice last week with a quadriceps injury. Jackson has missed only four games because of injury in his career, all during last season.

This has been a critical season for Jackson, who is in his fifth-year option and is not under contract for next year.

Injuries have been mounting for the Baltimore offense all season. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley (ankle) missed his second straight game, top running back J.K. Dobbins (knee) is on injured reserve, and No. 1 wide receiver Rashod Bateman (foot) is out for the season.

“Character gets rewarded in the end,” Harbaugh told his players in the locker room after the win. “That was a character victory, through and through.”