Baltimore's offense could be back at full strength soon as Jackson progresses toward a possible return against Cincinnati

Oct 23, 2026 at 3:27 pm ET • 2 min read

The Baltimore Ravens could be on the verge of getting their starting quarterback back in the lineup. Lamar Jackson, who has missed the last two-and-a-half games due to an ankle injury, said on Friday that he is hopeful to play on Sunday against the division rival Cincinnati Bengals.

"Right now, I'm heading in the right direction," Jackson said. "I can't call it right now. I've still got a little grace period. So, we'll see man. Hopefully, but I feel like I'm heading in the right direction right now."

Ravens coach Jesse Minter said that Jackson got a "pretty good amount of work in" during Friday's practice after he was limited on Wednesday and Thursday, but stated that the team is "still working through" whether or not Jackson will play on Sunday.

For his part, Jackson said the Ravens' medical staff told him he is dealing with a high ankle sprain, per The Athletic, which he seemingly sustained on the final play of the first half of the Ravens' victory over the Tennessee Titans back in Week 4. Jackson has been described as "day-to-day" since the injury, but this week was the first time he has participated in practice since going down.

He said on Friday that he doesn't have to be 100% healthy to play, but he doesn't want to be a "statue" on the field, via The Athletic. Jackson also relayed that the decision to play through multiple injuries that limited his mobility last season was "dumb, a little bit."

Jackson's rushing ability was severely limited last year, as he averaged a career-low 5.2 rushing attempts and 26.8 rushing yards per game. He had previously averaged at least 51.3 yards per game in every full season as a starter. He's averaging 36.0 yards per game so far this year, but he did leave one of those games at halftime.

If Jackson is again unable to start against Cincinnati, Tyler Huntley would once again take his place under center. Huntley has gone 1-1 in his two starts, and he's 51 of 72 for 429 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions so far. He's also run 15 times for 64 yards and a touchdown. The Ravens managed 30 points in their overtime victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 5, but slumped to just 10 points in their loss to the Cleveland Browns last week. 

The offense has looked electric with Jackson under center in new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle's scheme, but we have rarely seen it at full strength so far this year. Not only has Jackson missed two-plus games, but Zay Flowers also missed a game-and-a-half and was limited to just 33% of the snaps in another. If they can get fully healthy, the Ravens could take off offensively. But that all depends on Jackson's ankle.