The Ravens’ practice report made it official that quarterback Lamar Jackson did not practice on Thursday.
Jackson’s ankle limited him on Wednesday.
He has not had a full week of practice since Week 10, typically taking Wednesday off to rest first a knee and then a toe. His knee and toe issues are not listed this week.
He missed three games with a hamstring issue earlier this season.
Tyler Huntley will start against the Steelers if Jackson can’t go.
Jackson has completed 64.8 percent of his passes in 2025 for 1,841 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions. However, he has not thrown a touchdown in each of his past three games, marking the first time he’s had such a stretch in his career.
Defensive tackle Travis Jones (personal) was added to the report as a non-participant.
Wide receivers Rashod Bateman (ankle) and Devontez Walker (groin) were downgraded to limited after being full participants.
Outside linebacker Tavius Robinson (foot), safety Ar’Darius Washington (Achilles) and cornerback Nate Wiggins (foot) remained limited.
Ravens Clips
It turns out Lamar Jackson will not have a full week of practice as the Ravens get ready to play the Steelers on Sunday.
After being listed as a limited participant with an ankle injury on Wednesday, multiple reporters on the Ravens beat note Jackson is not practicing on Thursday.
Jackson has been dealing with multiple lower-body injuries this season, particularly since his return from missing three games due to a hamstring issue. As noted by Jamison Hensley of ESPN, Jackson has missed at least one day of practice in each of the last four weeks.
If Jackson is unable to play against Pittsburgh, Tyler Huntley would presumably get the start.
Jackson has completed 64.8 percent of his passes in 2025 for 1,841 yards with 15 touchdowns and four interceptions. However, Jackson has not thrown a touchdown in each of his last three games, marking the first time he’s had such a stretch in his career.
Notably, nose tackle Travis Jones is also not practicing on Thursday, according to multiple reporters.
Baltimore’s full Thursday injury report will be released later in the day.
The NFL has announced the 32 players who have been selected as their teams’ choices for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, which recognizes players both for their accomplishments on the field and for their work in their communities.
One of those 32 players will be announced as the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year at NFL Honors in San Francisco on Thursday, February 5, three days before Super Bowl LX.
Among the most recognizable names are Ravens running back Derrick Henry, Packers quarterback Jordan Love, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby, Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield and Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner.
The full list of 32 honorees is below.
Arizona Cardinals Kelvin Beachum
Atlanta Falcons A.J. Terrell Jr.
Baltimore Ravens Derrick Henry
Buffalo Bills Dion Dawkins
Carolina Panthers Austin Corbett
Chicago Bears DJ Moore
Cincinnati Bengals Ted Karras
Cleveland Browns Grant Delpit
Dallas Cowboys Solomon Thomas
Denver Broncos Garett Bolles
Detroit Lions DJ Reader
Green Bay Packers Jordan Love
Houston Texans Azeez Al-Shaair
Indianapolis Colts Kenny Moore II
Jacksonville Jaguars Logan Cooke
Kansas City Chiefs Travis Kelce
Las Vegas Raiders Maxx Crosby
Los Angeles Chargers Cameron Dicker
Los Angeles Rams Kyren Williams
Miami Dolphins Bradley Chubb
Minnesota Vikings C.J. Ham
New England Patriots Hunter Henry
New Orleans Saints Demario Davis
New York Giants Bobby Okereke
New York Jets Quincy Williams
Philadelphia Eagles Jordan Mailata
Pittsburgh Steelers Alex Highsmith
San Francisco 49ers Curtis Robinson
Seattle Seahawks Julian Love
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Baker Mayfield
Tennessee Titans Jeffery Simmons
Washington Commanders Bobby Wagner
Sometimes, the schedule set in May results in a late-season clunker or two. Sometimes, the NFL nails it.
For Week 14, the schedule couldn’t get much better.
Here’s the key. Each of the five windows for the weekend has a game with very high stakes.
It begins tonight, with the surprisingly surging 6-5-1 Cowboys facing the suddenly slumping 7-5 Lions. Both desperately need a win to remain viable in the chase for their respective division titles, or for one of the three NFC wild-cards. The loser won’t be eliminated, but it will get dicey. For the Lions, 11-6 should be good enough. For the Cowboys, however, a loss would make their best possible record 10-6-1. Anyone with an 11-6 record (obviously) would jump them, without the application of a single tiebreaker.
On Sunday, the 1:00 p.m. ET window has three must-watch games. The 6-6 Steelers visit the 6-6 Ravens for first place in the AFC North. (They play again in Week 18.) The 8-4 Colts, who haven’t won in Jacksonville since 2014, play the 8-4 Jaguars for first place in the AFC South. (The rematch happens in Week 17.) And the 4-8 Bengals, whose slim chances of jumping the Steelers and Ravens are hanging by a thread, visit 8-4 Buffalo, which could still jump for the playoff table — and miss.
At 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday, the 9-3 Bears and the 8-3-1 Packers renew the NFL’s oldest rivalry at Lambeau Field, with round two set for a Saturday night only 13 days later. It’s the most significant home-and-home for Chicago and Green Bay since the merger, and the biggest game between them since the 2010 NFC Championship.
Rarely are both teams good this late in the season. From the early 1970s through 1988, the Packers were more often than not non-contenders. From 1990 on, the Bears only had sporadic high-level seasons. This year, the black-and-blue planets have aligned perfectly.
On Sunday night, the Texans return to Arrowhead Stadium, where they lost twice in less than a month last season. On a Saturday night in December, Houston kept it within one score, 27-19. In the divisional round of the playoffs, the 23-14 outcome was uncomfortably close for the three-time AFC Champions.
Now, the Texans have won four in a row to get to 7-5. And the Chiefs, at 6-6, have slipped into “run the table” mode. With the first game coming against arguably the best defense in the league.
It all ends on Monday night, when the 8-4 Eagles visit the 8-4 Chargers. Philly has sputtered for weeks on offense, and the Chargers have shown a propensity to step into a periodic pothole. If the Cowboys start Week 14 with a win, the Eagles will be at risk of seeing their lead in the NFC East slip to a half game, 8-5 vs. 7-5-1.
So, yes, December is coming in like a lion. Hopefully, it will go out like a Tyrannosaurus Rex, with four weekends of NFL action setting the stage for one of the craziest final weekends of the regular season we’ve ever seen to start 2026.
Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt limped off the field late in last Sunday’s loss to the Bills and he is on the team’s first injury report for Week 14.
Watt did not take part in practice due to a toe injury. Watt was not among the players that Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin listed on Tuesday as likely to be limited or out of practice this week.
Linebacker Patrick Queen (glute), quarterback Aaron Rodgers (left wrist), and defensive lineman Derrick Harmon (knee) were on that list and they were all out on Wednesday. Harmon has been ruled out and Rodgers is expected to play against the Ravens.
Wide receiver DK Metcalf (rest), wide receiver Ben Skowronek (shoulder), cornerback Donte Kent (ankle, knee), cornerback James Pierre (concussion), and offensive lineman Calvin Anderson (knee) were listed as limited.
Ravens tight end Mark Andrews has spent his entire NFL career in Baltimore, and he won’t be going anywhere.
The Ravens announced today that they have signed Andrews to a three-year contract extension. The team’s announcement said the deal should make Andrews a Raven for life.
“We are excited and proud to announce a three-year contract extension with Mark Andrews,” General Manager Eric DeCosta said. “Mark is an all-time Raven—a top competitor and Pro Bowl tight end who is also a big part of our Baltimore community. Congratulations to Mark and his family!”
Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports that it’s a $39.3 million extension with $26 million guaranteed. Before the extension, Andrews had been slated to become a free agent in March.
The Ravens drafted Andrews in the third round in 2018, the same year they drafted Lamar Jackson. Andrews has caught more passes from Jackson than anyone and is the Ravens’ all-time leader in catches, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson is following a different practice schedule this week.
Jackson has sat out on Wednesdays while dealing with knee, ankle, and toe injuries before returning to practice the rest of the week. Jackson has had a bit more time to rest since facing the Bengals on Thanksgiving, however, and that has led to a significant change for Week 14.
Reporters at the open portion of practice note that Jackson is on the field and working with his teammates on Wednesday. Jackson’s official participation level will be revealed on the team’s injury report.
The Wednesday practice is a good sign that Jackson is feeling better at this point in the week than he has in the last few weeks and the Ravens will be hoping that leads to a better performance against the Steelers on Sunday as well.
No two living NFL coaches have faced each other as many times as Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin and Baltimore’s John Harbaugh.
Sunday’s Steelers-Ravens game will be the 39th time Tomlin and Harbaugh have squared off as head coaches. Only George Halas and Curly Lambeau, who coached against each other in 49 games between 1921 and 1953, faced off more times of any pair of coaches in NFL history. Halas coached the Bears for 40 seasons. Lambeau coached the Packers for 29 seasons, the Chicago Cardinals for two seasons and Washington for two seasons.
Tomlin became the Steelers’ head coach in 2007 and Harbaugh became the Ravens’ head coach in 2008, and they’ve coached against each other twice every regular season and four times in the playoffs since then. The two of them have had remarkable job security, although there’s been talk this season that their job security could be faltering, and this could be their last season coaching against each other.
Through 38 games, Tomlin is 21-17 against Harbaugh. The Ravens are six-point favorites on Sunday at Baltimore.
What was supposed to be the slow time from late June through late July was anything but, thanks to an unexpected collaboration with Pablo Torre. And the fuse we lit together in the days preceding July 4 is making its final push toward either an impressive display of fireworks — or another dud.
Per multiple sources, a decision on the appeal of the collusion ruling that both the NFL and the NFL Players Association hid for multiple months is coming.
The hearing before the three-judge panel happened roughly two weeks ago, we’re told. The decision is expected sooner than later, we’re told.
The case was sparked by the five-year, $230 million, fully-guaranteed contract that the Browns gave to quarterback Deshaun Watson in March 2022. As originally framed, the grievance focused on the refusal of the Ravens, Cardinals, and Broncos to give fully-guaranteed deals to Lamar Jackson, Kyler Murray, and Russell Wilson, respectively.
The arbitrator found that the NFL urged teams to curtail fully-guaranteed contracts, but that the teams didn’t heed the directive. It was, in my opinion, a failure by the arbitrator to properly review, process, and analyze the circumstantial evidence, accepting predictable denials while ignoring common sense.
Along the way, the case was expanded to include all veterans who signed contracts during the relevant window. If the NFLPA prevails as to all players who were allegedly affected by the collusion, the financial consequences could be crippling for the league.
The reporting that first emerged in an episode of Pablo Torre Finds Out exposed the existence of the hidden ruling, raising pointed questions about the union’s failure to weaponize the portion of the ruling that essentially caught the NFL with both hands buried in the collusion cookie jar. And it became the first domino that resulted in aggressive scrutiny of the NFLPA, culminating in the resignations of NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell and NFLPA chief strategy officer JC Tretter.
After the collusion ruling came to light, the NFLPA appealed the decision. That process has played out quietly, with no reporting as to the arguments made, either in writing or during the hearing.
When a decision is announced, we’ll possibly be back to where we were in January, when the initial ruling was issued. Will the NFL or the NFLPA release the document? Or will they once again hide it? Will the media collectively shrug at the situation (as it did for months), or will it aggressively seek to obtain the decision, to study its terms, and to analyze its implications?
The vast majority of the “journalism” that happens in sports media consists of being spoon fed by the team or an agent the specifics of a transaction that often is announced only minutes after multiple reporters engage in a race to be the first to tweet the “news.” When the parties are committed to secrecy, the game changes. Most don’t even try to find out the things they don’t want us to know.
They didn’t want us to know about the initial collusion ruling. They may not want us to know about the appeal decision. One thing I know is that Torre won’t let it go, and that there will likely be another PTFO collaboration once we get our eyes on the thing they may hope no one ever sees.
With failed former Raiders coach Lane Kiffin working his way up the college football ladder toward a minimum payday of $13 million per year, some NFL coaches may be interested in ditching the realities of life in the NFL for having an NCAA program of their own.
But there’s an issue, fueled by the new NIL and transfer realities of college football. Major programs with open positions can’t wait around for an NFL head coach’s season to end.
Nineteen years ago this month, when Dolphins coach Nick Saban notoriously declared, “I’m not going to be the Alabama coach,” Saban waited until his 6-10 regular season ended before bolting for ‘Bama. One year later, Falcons coach Bobby Petrino absconded from Atlanta before the season concluded, taking the job at Arkansas.
The ability of an NFL head coach to hit the road for the NCAA depends largely on whether his contract permits it. (Saban’s contract, for instance, allowed him to return to college football whenever he wanted.) But who would quit on his NFL team before the season has ended?
Sure, NFL teams fire head coaches during the season every year. The idea that a coach of a good pro team would load up the truck and move out of town is borderline inconceivable.
The problem is that the schools can’t afford to wait until January. Transfer portals will open. Money will need to be raised. College programs need to fill their vacancies ASAFP.
At some point, it makes sense to wait. With Penn State whiffing on BYU coach Kalani Sitake, the Nittany Lions may want to consider an NFL coach. If the Ravens don’t make it to the playoffs, John Harbaugh could be a perfect fit at Penn State — if he’s ready to move on from the job he has held since 2008.
And, no, Mike Tomlin likely won’t be a candidate at Penn State. He has made it clear he’s not interested in college football, famously saying “never say never, but never” when asked about the USC job in 2021.
Either way, the NFL’s coaching carousel is less than five weeks away from hitting high gear. At this point, Penn State may be wise to wait. Generally speaking, however, most college programs will want to fill vacancies long before a current NFL head coach could reasonably walk away.
Which will make it very difficult for NFL head coaches to jump to the increasing money and inherent power of running a college program.
