- The status of Sunday’s Ravens/Steelers game is in doubt after Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson tested positive for COVID-19.
- Baltimore has 10 players on the reserve/COVID-19 including 8 starters.
- The Ravens/Steelers game was originally rescheduled from Thursday due to the Baltimore COVID-19 issues.
Just when it looked as if the Baltimore Ravens’ COVID-19 couldn’t get any worse they have. On Thanksgiving Day the report surfaced that Ravens starting quarterback Lamar Jackson has tested positive for the coronavirus. He’s been added to the Reserve/COVID-19 list and although his official status for Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers is ‘questionable’ it’s difficult to come up with a scenario in which he could play. NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport was the first to go public with the news:
Although it borders on unimaginable that Jackson could play he’s yet to be officially ruled out by the team. That will likely happen on Friday. NFL.com is reporting that Robert Griffin III will start in Jackson’s place. In one of the countless ironies of life this could provide RGIII with the break he needs to revive his career.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on the ongoing Baltimore issues with COVID-19 and speculated that the Week 12 Ravens/Steelers matchup wouldn’t be played:
In addition, the Baltimore Sun quoting an ‘unnamed source with knowledge of the situation’ also said that the game is unlikely to happen. In addition to their ‘source’ they reported that the players were advised that the Steelers/Ravens game most likely would be postponed or canceled:
Jackson, the NFL’s reigning Most Valuable Player and a beloved leader in the Ravens’ locker room, is the highest-profile player yet sidelined by a virus that three other Ravens tested positive for Thursday, a source said. With the team having returned positive COVID-19 tests every day this week, Ravens players were told in a call Thursday night that Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers is increasingly unlikely to be played.
The game was originally slated to be played on Thanksgiving Day but was rescheduled after the Ravens’ COVID-19 outbreak reached a high level of severity. The NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero indicated that the league will continue to monitor the situation but that for now it’s still on the Sunday schedule:
Pelissero also shared an interview with the league’s top medical advisor who indicated that hope is high that the Ravens’ outbreak is near an end:
Pelissero also reiterated that the league competition committee added roster flexibility this season just for this type of circumstance:
Not surprisingly, the Ravens/Steelers game is off the board at most major sportsbooks in Nevada, elsewhere in the US and offshore.
