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Reports: Lamar Jackson to make first career start Sunday with Joe Flacco expected out

With Joe Flacco expected to sit out the Baltimore Ravens’ game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, the time has reportedly come for Lamar Jackson to show the football world what he can do in a full game.

Jackson is expected to start and see the majority of snaps for the Ravens on Sunday, according to multiple reports Saturday night. Flacco will likely sit with a hip injury, but won’t require surgery.

Per the Ravens’ injury report, Flacco hasn’t participated in practice all week since sustaining a hip injury two weeks ago against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jackson was also a non-participant on Thursday due to a stomach problem, but returned to full practice a day later on Friday. Robert Griffin III, the team’s third-string quarterback, figures to back up Jackson on Sunday.

Thanks to a bye week during Week 10, Flacco’s injury came with some fortunate timing for the Ravens. The team has now had a full two weeks to prepare Jackson and an offense that figures to have a different look for the Bengals.

Lamar Jackson’s time finally arrives

The last of the five quarterbacks drafted in the first round of the this year’s NFL draft to take the reins of his offense, Jackson has seen more action than your standard backup quarterback this season.

The Ravens have put Jackson on the field for multiple plays each week, some of them trick plays featuring Jackson and a very non-enthusiastic Flacco on the field at the same time. The results so far have been encouraging.

In 12 pass attempts this season, Jackson has posted seven completions and 87 passing yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. On the ground, the freakishly athletic Jackson has 139 rushing yards and one touchdown on 28 attempts, good for 6.32 yards per carry. That’s obviously a very small sample, but it still gives reason to believe that Jackson deserves a fair shake at the Ravens’ starting job.

Lamar Jackson rewrote the record books at Louisville. (AP Photo)
Lamar Jackson rewrote the record books at Louisville. (AP Photo)

Jackson was drafted 32nd overall after the Ravens trade up to select what many believe to be their quarterback of the future. Few players in college football history were as prolific as Jackson, who won a Heisman Trophy in 2016. In three seasons as a starter at Louisville, Jackson accrued 9,043 passing yards and 69 passing touchdowns against 27 interceptions while running for 4,132 yards and 50 touchdowns.

While Jackson remains raw as a passer, he has a talented arm and generational potential as a runner. That combination could bring an entirely new look for a Ravens offense that has operated with Flacco under center for nearly a decade.

Flacco expected to return soon

Of course, the Ravens can’t change too much under Jackson if they seriously plan to go back to Flacco after his expected return in the next week or two. That could very well be the plan for now, but it’s also hard to see the team benching Jackson if he produces anywhere close to what he did in college.

After an encouraging start on offense, the Ravens now sit at 4-5 and 17th in the NFL in points per game. Jackson giving the offense a jolt down the stretch would likely mean bad things for Flacco this offseason, given that the Ravens would save $10 million against the salary cap by cutting him this offseason, per Spotrac.

All of that will depend on how Jackson performs, and he’ll begin against a Bengals that ranks last in the NFL in yards allowed per game. There might not be a better opportunity for the 21-year-old to make a first impression.

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