What head coach John Harbaugh called an honest mistake could end up costing the Baltimore Ravens dearly.
The team came under fire after reporting quarterback Lamar Jackson was a full participant in Friday's practice, leading some to believe he could start Sunday's Week 8 matchup against the Chicago Bears.
But on Saturday, the team changed his designation to "limited participant" because he ran the scout team offense and didn't actually practice with the Ravens' 53-man roster while ruling him out for Sunday because of his lingering hamstring injury.
"It really is an honest mistake," Harbaugh said, via ESPN. "I can tell you this: Nobody’s trying to hide anything. There’s no advantage to be gained with that."
Because of the switch in Jackson's practice status after the fact, some questioned if the team was trying to get away with something shady. The situation created a social media firestorm, and by Saturday evening, the NFL had no choice but to announce it would investigate the situation.
NFL rules state that teams in this situation could be fined or forfeit draft picks, and according to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, the league may try to make an example out of the Ravens to discourage other teams from potentially trying something similar in the future.
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"For now, the Ravens are looking at fines, they're looking at potential loss of draft picks, and even suspensions are on the table based upon what the NFL may find out," Florio reported.
"A source told me today the NFL understands given what happened in the NBA it's very bad optics, and as the source said, it's an opportunity for the league to make a very strong statement on a very important topic. And look for all other teams to go back and look at their procedures to make sure they get it right going forward."
Jackson is expected to play in Thursday's Week 9 matchup against the Miami Dolphins after missing the last three games.
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