Lamar Will Play But How Much Will They Need Him?

Lamar Jackson Throws A Pass Against The Bills
Photo credit © Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

By Alex Woodward

 

Ravens host the Jets on Thursday Night Football and despite Lamar Jackson being listed as questionable with a quad injury, he plans to play. Lamar says he suffered a bruise on his quad when tossing his 61 yard touchdown to Hayden Hurst last week against the Bills. I have no problem with Lamar playing on Thursday night but at the same time I feel like he shouldn't be needed for long. 

The Ravens have been blowing out opponents all season long and this matchup with the Jets has comfortable win written all over it. Baltimore is dealing with injuries to Mark Andrews, Ronnie Stanley and Lamar Jackson but that's nothing compared to the laundry list of injured players on the Jets. Their top safety Jamal Adams is listed as doubtful along with wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, cornerback Arthur Maulet and defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. They also have running back Bilal Powell, tight end Ryan Griffin and cornerback Brian Poole ruled out. Even if the Jets were fully healthy I would still be confident in the Ravens coming out with a win but when you take Quinnen Williams, Jamal Adams and two of their cornerbacks off the field...the Ravens appear to have a very favorable matchup for their offense. 

There has been a lot of talk about opposing teams targeting Lamar Jackson's legs more often in recent weeks. I don't think people are doing that to intentionally injure Jackson, it's just the only way they can try and bring him down. You look less foolish trying to dive for his legs than you do trying to square him up for a tackle.

.@Lj_era8 is out here breaking ankles --(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/rwqB7VnZZs

— SNF on NBC (@SNFonNBC) December 1, 2019

The Ravens clinch the AFC North with a win on Thursday night and they already hold an essential two game lead over the Patriots for the top seed in the AFC. The most important thing at this point is making sure Lamar is healthy for the playoffs. Lamar has chilled out on the sidelines during the fourth quarter four times this season after giving his team a comfortable lead. I believe Lamar will be able to give the Ravens another comfortable lead on Thursday night and in my opinion, once you get that lead (whatever they feel is comfortable) they should take Lamar out and let Robert Griffin III finish out the game. Of course, a lot of this depends on how well the defense plays but I don't think anyone looks at that Jets offense and shudders in fear.

Personally, I think the Ravens would still win if Robert Griffin III started the game but that won't happen. Hopefully the Ravens can grab a comfortable lead early and take Lamar out as soon as possible. Then it's 10 days of rest before hitting the road against the Browns. The last thing the Ravens need is Lamar suffering a more serious injury in the middle of one of the most magical regular seasons in franchise history.

Hopefully this is what Lamar will be doing with most of his Thursday night:

Victory Monday Mood --@Lj_era8 pic.twitter.com/hbbmcsTGP0

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) November 11, 2019

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