Two days after Lamar Jackson struggled to finish off the Cleveland Browns in a 33-31 loss, Ravens coach John Harbaugh came to his quarterback’s defense.
Jackson completed just one of five fourth-quarter attempts Sunday, though he was under pressure from the Browns’ pass rush and had one pass dropped by wide receiver Rashod Bateman.
“Nobody’s perfect in every game,” Harbaugh said Tuesday. “Lamar competes. He fights. He plays hard. You’re going against the best defenses in football, the schemes in crazy situations. I just wouldn’t rather have any other quarterback in the league than Lamar Jackson in a tough situation. We all try to do our best in every situation. We all try to build and improve through all these experiences that we have, and he’s no different.
“I just love his competitiveness. I’m a Lamar Jackson guy. That’s my guy. I believe in him, and I’ll take him in every fourth-quarter situation from here until I’m done coaching — I’ll tell you that. I’m proud of him, and we’ll roll with Lamar Jackson.”
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Jackson, who’s struggled with interceptions in close late-game scenarios over the past two seasons, said Tuesday that his focus is on “finishing the game.” The last time the Ravens hosted the Cincinnati Bengals, who are returning to Baltimore this week for a “Thursday Night Football” matchup, Jackson led the team on a game-winning drive capped by kicker Justin Tucker’s 43-yard field goal as time expired.
“When we have the ball, have control of the time, have control the ball, keep getting first downs until the clock says 0:00, and we’re up with the win — improve at that,” Jackson said.
Injury updates
Ravens left tackle Ronnie Stanley and cornerback Marlon Humphrey were among seven players missing at practice Tuesday. Stanley and Humphrey left Sunday’s game with knee and calf injuries, respectively, and both were estimated to be missing from Monday’s walk-through.
Left guard John Simpson was also absent Tuesday, sidelined by an illness and shoulder injury, meaning the Ravens could be without the starting left side of their line against Cincinnati. Right tackle Morgan Moses, who’s missed the past two games with a shoulder injury, told reporters that he’s prepared to play.
Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (rest), inside linebacker Trenton Simpson (concussion), and outside linebackers Kyle Van Noy (groin) and Jadeveon Clowney (rest) missed practice as well, while wide receiver Devin Duvernay (hamstring) was limited. An injury report with game statuses will be released Wednesday afternoon.
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“We’re on a short week,” Harbaugh said after practice. “Guys are working. It’s just a different kind of a schedule. They’ll be working, and we’ll see how the guys — all the different guys — we’ll see how they are Thursday, really, is where we’re at. Guys are doing their best. We’ll probably have some good news, maybe not on some other ones, but guys are working hard to get back.”
The Ravens also released practice squad tight end Eric Tomlinson and signed offensive tackle Josh Wells to their practice squad.
Baltimore Banner reporter Giana Han contributed to this report.
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