Why Lamar Jackson's Ravens Injury Report Status is Being Reviewed By NFL After Change

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told reporters on Saturday that the league "will look into" the Baltimore Ravens handling of Lamar Jackson's practice designations this week after he was ruled out for Sunday's game against the Chicago Bears with an ongoing hamstring injury.

According to ESPN's Jamison Hensley, "The Ravens could be subject to discipline by the NFL for violating the league's injury report policy because the team originally listed Jackson as a full participant in Friday's practice. Baltimore then changed Jackson's practice participation to limited a day later. ... According to a source, Jackson participated fully in Friday's practice, but he ran the scout team. According to the injury report policy, Jackson should have been listed as limited Friday."

The NFL's injury report notes that a player who doesn't take his normal reps during the team portion of practice for medical reasons—in the case of Jackson, that would mean running the first-team offense as the starter—and instead runs with the scout team should have a limited designation.

The Ravens said in a statement that they changed his Friday status from full participation to limited "upon further evaluation today and after conferring with the league office."

One reason the situation is a major story is because the Bears received incorrect injury information as they were preparing to face the Ravens. The other, however, is that there are gambling implications for bettors, given how much impact a two-time MVP like Jackson has on Baltimore's offense.

The Ravens went from being six-point favorites on Oct. 23 to 1.5-point favorites on Saturday. That's a significant shift.

It remains to be seen if the NFL will take any action against the Ravens, but the league's investigation is underway.