This is a huge blow for Baltimore. Lamar Jackson has officially been ruled out for the Ravens Wild Card game against the Cincinnati Bengals, potentially leaving the team with a rookie third string QB as the only healthy starter.
This is now the second AFC Wild Card game that has all but been finished before the kickoff.
Does anyone really think that a Ravens team led by rookie third-strong QB Anthony Brown, who has only played in one game this season (which was last week’s loss to the Bengals) is really going to go into Cincinatti and beat the 2X defending AFC North and AFC champion Bengals? Or what about career backup Tyler Huntley? You know, the QB who has consistently failed to deliver for the Ravens during his 5-week stretch as the starting QB.
Okay, I don’t want to discredit Huntley, the Ravens roster, and John Harbaugh too much as they were able to go 10-7 on the year and secure a spot back in the playoffs after last season horrendous collapse in the final month, but this team just isn’t capable of competing with the best roster in the NFL without #8 under center. Remember, the Ravens were 8-4 when Lamar Jackson went out with his PCL sprain against the Denver Broncos.
With one of their backups as the starting QB, the Ravens went 2-3 and fell from leading the AFC North division to barely staying above the #7 seed. Plus, those two wins were a 16-14 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers and a 17-9 win over the Atlanta Falcons, both of which are teams that are obviously not in the playoffs. And in the three games they lost, to the Steelers, Browns, and Bengals, the Ravens averaged just 11 points per game. That’s horrible.
Just like how the Dolphins without Tua are a dreadful team, the Ravens without Lamar Jackson are an 8-9 or 7-10 team that finishes 3rd in the AFC North and is picking anywhere from 8-12 in the NFL draft. Or, in other words, the Ravens are an average to below average football team.
Now, its normal for just about every team to have a massive drop off in results and wins when it losses its franchise QB, but the Ravens are slightly different. Unlike teams like the Eagles, 49ers, and Cowboys who have lost their franchise QBs this season but still had above .500 records with their backups due to great roster talent, Lamar Jackson is the Ravens offense.
That 11-point average should tell you all you need to know about how efficient (well, more like inefficient) Baltimore is without Jackson. Aside from Mark Andrews, the Ravens simply have one of the worst supporting casts on offense in the entire NFL as they over rely on Jackson and his freak athleticism to bail them out of every game.
And that’s why the Ravens are more than likely going to get blownout by the Cincinatti Bengals come this Sunday, while it might also be the reason why the Ravens and Lamar Jackson go through a messy divorce this offseason.
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