https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/nfl-thursday-night-football-preview-lamar-jackson-returns-with-ravens-in-do-or-die-mode-vs-dolphins-132102498.html
The rest of the Baltimore Ravens’ season will feel like the postseason.
A 2-5 start has put the Ravens in an urgent state before Halloween. A win last week, with Tyler Huntley playing well off the bench to help beat the Bears, kept the Ravens alive as Lamar Jackson returns to the lineup from a hamstring injury. Baltimore isn’t in a terrible situation for a 2-5 team, just two games behind the first-place Pittsburgh Steelers, but they know there’s very little room for error.
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“Each and every game is going to be like a win or go home,” Jackson said this week. “It’s do or die right now, each and every week.”
It’s not quite that dire, but the Ravens have to go 7-3 the rest of the season just to finish above .500. They can’t drop many more games.
The Ravens should beat the Miami Dolphins, who are 2-6 after a surprising blowout at the Atlanta Falcons last week. But this has already been a weird season for the Ravens, with plenty of injuries and disappointing performances. Getting Jackson back allows the Ravens to dream big about the rest of the season. If he’s healthy, he’s still arguably the best player in the NFL. The Ravens’ hopes of finally getting to a Super Bowl with Jackson aren’t dead quite yet.
But that dream might die quickly with a loss on Thursday night.
Lamar Jackson is expected to return for Thursday night’s game against the Dolphins. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)
(Michael Owens via Getty Images)
Who needs it more?
Well, this one is easy. The Dolphins are mostly just playing to see who will still be around in 2026. Ultimately, not many may survive unless there is a stunning second-half run. Meanwhile, a Ravens loss to the Dolphins would put them in an even worse situation. The Ravens should still feel like if they can win the AFC North, they can be a team that can make a deep playoff run. The Ravens don’t need to win out, but they do need to beat all remaining opponents on the Dolphins’ level.
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Key player: Ravens QB Lamar Jackson
Let’s be real, the entire world will be keeping its eyes on one player Thursday night. Jackson’s ability to come back and play at his normal level is a major factor in the rest of the NFL season. Jackson has been out four weeks, counting the Ravens’ bye, with a hamstring injury. He had a weird stop-and-start in his return last week, when the Ravens misrepresented his practice participation on the injury report and he was ruled out on Saturday for Baltimore’s game the next day. If Jackson wasn’t ready to return on Sunday, is he definitely ready four days later? There isn’t a more important injury return this entire season than Jackson coming back to the Ravens’ lineup.
Betting market watch, by Ben Fawkes
Lamar Jackson is back at QB and the Ravens are healthy 7.5-point road favorites at the Miami Dolphins on Thursday night. With an increasingly healthy defense, this is a game Baltimore must win to get back in the playoff race. This line was -5.5 back in May, so the increase is both reflective of Miami’s struggles and the fact that the Ravens are a top-five power-ranked team when healthy — something they’ve rarely been. This will be a good measuring stick for Baltimore.
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Check out more of Ben’s work at the Yahoo Sports betting hub.
Miami and Baltimore are a couple of two-win teams, but they’re in very different positions. Baltimore is now the betting favorite to win the AFC North (an easy upcoming schedule certainly helps), while most people think Miami is going nowhere. Here are some fantasy themes to consider tonight.
Is Lamar Jackson Superman right away? After missing three games with a hamstring injury, Jackson is expected to play tonight. Can he be a proactive runner? And can his return elevate fringe fantasy options like Mark Andrews?
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Which Tua Tagovailoa do we see? Tagovailoa has been good in four games this year and awful in four other games. Last week’s four-touchdown showing at Atlanta was terrific, and Baltimore’s defense is still vulnerable, mostly due to injuries. But Tua really doesn’t have a fantasy floor, either.
Is Zay Flowers back to set-and-forget status? Flowers had the look of a third-year breakout player before Jackson got hurt. Flowers has still been quasi-productive in the downtime, but we can’t dream about his ceiling until Jackson shows he’s 100% again. Hopefully that’s tonight.
Check out more of Scott’s work at the Yahoo Sports fantasy hub.
https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/nfl-thursday-night-football-preview-lamar-jackson-returns-with-ravens-in-do-or-die-mode-vs-dolphins-132102498.html
