The NFL has wrapped its investigation into the Ravens’ handling of **Lamar Jackson**‘s injury status last week. The team received a $100K fine for violating the league’s policy on injury reporting, ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweets.
Not docking the Ravens any draft picks or moving to suspend anyone, the league determined this violation stemmed from negligence on the team’s part rather than the AFC North club attempting to gain a competitive edge, NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero adds. Had the NFL determined the Ravens were attempting to gain an advantage with their Jackson tactics, Pelissero adds a more significant penalty — including potential loss of picks — would have been levied.
The Ravens fully cooperated with the investigation, one centered around the team incorrectly listing Jackson’s Oct. 24 practice participation. Baltimore had listed Jackson as a full participant at practice on Friday. The Ravens had planned a day of scout team reps for the mobile passer and saw him complete the day with no issues. NFL regulations concerning injury reporting don’t allow this, though. If injury causes a player that would normally be receiving starting reps to practice with the scout team, they have to be listed as a limited participant at practice.
John Harbaugh labeled this an honest mistake, and the NFL investigation validated the longtime Ravens HC’s view of the matter. After notice from the league, Baltimore was forced to retroactively change Jackson’s practice participation, and the team announced that he would not play in Week 8’s game.
Entering their Bears matchup 1-5, the Ravens were able to win with Tyler Huntley starting in place of Jackson, whose practice report now lists three limited practices. That type of runup usually leads to a player suiting up for that week’s game, but the Ravens ended up resting Jackson ahead of their Thursday-night game in Miami. The NFL not ruling this a deliberate attempt to muddy the waters for the Bears will surely not go over well in Chicago, but Baltimore — which annually prioritizes compensatory picks — not being docked any late-round draft choices will bring a sigh of relief for that franchise.
More to come.