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Lamar Jackson's return to the Baltimore Ravens lineup following his surgery to repair a broken and dislocated thumb got a dose of clarity on Friday, but not necessarily a ray of optimism.
Following criticism of the club over the fact Jesse Minter was tight-lipped and refused to provide clear details on whether surgery had occurred or what the actual recovery trajectory looked like, the Ravens released a statement from their coach on the matter.
Short answer: Jackson is out 6 to 10 weeks.
LAMAR JACKSON GOES FROM BEING A PROBLEM FOR 31 NFL TEAMS TO BECOMING A PROBLEM FOR THE RAVENS
That is not good news.
Jackson suffered the ugly injury to his throwing hand during the first play of a Week 8 matchup against the Buffalo Bills. That was on Nov. 1.
Jackson underwent the surgery to repair the issue that same week, sources have told OutKick and Fox News Digital.
So allow us to do some calendar math:
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Six weeks from Nov. 1 would land on Dec. 13, which is Week 14 of the NFL's 18-week regular season.
That is the most optimistic view of when Jackson might return. It could be argued it's also the most improbable view because recovering from this injury and surgery on his throwing hand is not easy for a quarterback because after the recovery, there needs to be a regaining of strength and flexibility.
The other end of that spectrum is the 10-week recovery period. That one would mean Jackson misses the remainder of the regular season.
It also means that the quarterback would not be ready to play until around Jan. 10 which is around when the NFL's wild card round of the postseason begins. (The NFL has not yet released the actual dates of its postseason games).
This is all interesting and means things.
It means, at worst, the Ravens must rally the remainder of this season and play well enough to make the playoffs to see Jackson back in the lineup again.
Checking in with reality, that is unlikely. It's not that Jackson cannot get ready to play again, it's just that there may be no postseason game for him to prepare for because the Ravens have lost four consecutive games, are in last place in the AFC North, and are currently out of the playoff picture.
And, yes, the club this week traded for journeyman quarterback Jacoby Brissett to start until Jackson returns. But Brissett's career record as a starting quarterback is 23-50.
No bueno.
So let's consider the optimistic outlook, which is Jackson returning by the middle of December. The Ravens have three games between now and Dec. 13 because they have a bye in Week 13.
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Can the team stay relevant the next three games by breaking a four-game losing skid and not losing sight of the Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns in the division?
That's the question.
"[Jackson] is doing everything he can to get back, and we will let his progress guide the timing of his return," Minter said in the team's statement released on Friday. "We are committed to playing our best football over the second half of the season."
They're going to have to do exactly that to make Jackson's return timeline matter at all.
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