Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson returned to practice on Friday and will be under center when Baltimore hosts the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday with first place in the AFC North on the line.
Jackson confirmed that he was stepped on during practice on Wednesday, leading to him being limited in that session. The ankle injury kept him out of practice on Thursday.
Head coach John Harbaugh was quick to confirm that the two-time NFL MVP will start Sunday’s contest between the Ravens (6-6) and Steelers (6-6).
As for Jackson, he is looking to atone for a three-turnover performance on Thanksgiving night in Baltimore’s 32-14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
“It’s a turnover-battle game. The team who has the ball the most and puts the most points on the board, that’s the gonna be the outcome of who’s gonna win the game,” Jackson said of this Sunday’s contest.
“That’s all there is to it. It’s a huge rivalry. It’s like a playoff game.”
Jackson has missed at least one practice for four consecutive weeks while the Ravens dug out of a hole in the AFC North. Baltimore started the season 1-5 but worked to get back to 6-5 before losing last week and throwing the division into a toss-up that could even include the Bengals. Cincinnati (4-8) has Joe Burrow back in the fold and heads to Buffalo on Sunday.
Injuries have limited Jackson for more than two months. He missed three games with a hamstring injury following a 37-20 loss at Kansas City on Sept. 28.
Bouncing back against Pittsburgh is important to Jackson, who was not thrilled with his performance against Cincinnati.
“I’m mad, but I’m happy we got the wins when we did,” Jackson said. “But this past Thursday – Thanksgiving night – I wasn’t happy at all. We had turnovers, missed assignments, and we weren’t us, so I’m not happy about that at all. If I’m not scoring a touchdown, but we’re winning, who can be mad at a win? I’m mad at the losses.”
But he beat the Steelers in two of their three games last season — including the wild-card round win in January 2025 — throwing six touchdown passes and leaning on running back Derrick Henry for massive production. Henry gained 186 yards with two touchdowns in the playoff win only four weeks after rushing for 162 yards on 24 carries Week 16.
The Steelers won the game played last November in Pittsburgh, 18-16, and swept the Ravens in 2023.
Ravens safety Ar’Darius Washington (Achilles) and outside linebacker Tavius Robinson (foot) were ruled out on Friday.
As for the Steelers, quarterback Aaron Rodgers (left wrist) was a full practice participant on Friday and is set to start. Defensive tackle Derrick Harmon (knee) was ruled out earlier in the week and will miss his second straight game. Safety Kyle Dugger (hand) and offensive tackle Calvin Anderson (knee) were ruled out Friday.
–Field Level Media
