Lamar Jackson sends confident message to NFL defenses after Wednesday's absence
After missing practice on Wednesday, the Baltimore Ravens saw their star quarterback, Lamar Jackson, return to the practice field on Thursday. He was absent on Wednesday due to knee soreness, but just as Head Coach John Harbaugh anticipated, Jackson was back in full capacity on Thursday.
While Jackson's health was never too much in question ahead of their Week 11 matchup with the Cleveland Browns, it was still worrisome to see him pop up on the injury report with a knee issue. The two-time MVP is taking snaps behind one of the worst offensive lines in football this year, especially when it comes to the interior. Guards Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele have struggled, and certainly have not helped in Jackson’s return from his hamstring injury.
Still, Jackson will be ready to go on Sunday. Despite the poor performance of the offensive line, he has shown he can lead a steady, winning offense since he retook the field in Week 9, and is as confident as ever heading into their bout in Cleveland.
Lamar Jackson is healthy and ready to go
Following Thursday’s practice, Jackson talked to the media about how he felt after being out of action the day before. When asked if he expects teams to blitz him more when he shows up on the injury report, he gave a cool, calm, and collected response.
“That’s cool with me,” Jackson said. “I’m cool with it. We’re gonna see.”
In the past, blitzes have given the Ravens’ offense problems. However, ever since Jackson has made significant growth as a passer, those problems have not loomed as large. The lackluster offensive line may have issues, but as far as Jackson is concerned, he is ready for any potential challenge that may lie ahead.
The Browns have one of the fiercest defenses in the NFL in 2025. Through nine games, they are allowing the second-least amount of yards per game at 264.9 yards, and their pass rush group has played a massive role in that.
Their defensive front is headed by All-Pro defensive end Myles Garrett, who is likely the best defensive player in the league. Cleveland has 27 sacks this year, which ranks tied for eighth in the NFL, and 11 of those have come from Garrett.
In Baltimore’s Week 2 contest against the Browns, Jackson was sacked three times. Garrett, Devin Bush, and Cameron Thomas were the culprits. The Ravens still put up 41 points in that one, but defense and special teams helped out in that department.
While the Ravens’ offense line will likely have trouble against Cleveland’s defensive front, Jackson’s always shown an innate ability to stay composed when the pocket breaks down. If that happens again in Week 11, the 28-year-old should prove up for the challenge.
Cowboys ‘Have to Bend’ on Potential $32 Million All-Pro Decision
For the Cowboys, as long as Jerry Jones has been running the show, getting top-level contracts to players who are at the top of their positions across the league has not been a particularly easy process. And it might sound worthy of a chuckle at first blush, but it shouldn’t: Jones and the Cowboys could well find themselves in that same kind of contract standoff with the team’s kicker, Brandon Aubrey.
It won’t rise to the level of the Cowboys’ negotiations on new deals with CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott last year, but Aubrey is, indeed, heading into free agency. He can be a restricted free-agent under NFL rules–allowing the Cowboys to match offers for him–but this is a case in which the team ought to simply be aggressive in getting its two-time All-Pro locked up on a fair market deal.
And that deal is likely to be a record-setter.
Cowboys Scoring ‘Maximized’ Thanks to Brandon Aubrey
That’s the view from the NFL contract expert website Spotrac, where manager editor Mike Ginnitti points out that kickers are more important than ever. Aubrey, being the best in the business, should expect to be paid accordingly.
Said Ginnitti on “The Spotrac Podcast” this week: “One of the bigger takeaways halfway through 2025 is not just how successful kickers are, but the length, the distance. Now they’re using kicker balls, a lot of things happening, the league is promoting this kind of thing especially with the kickoff changes. But there’s no question, especially with a player like Brandon Aubrey, that his importance to the Dallas Cowboys’ scoring—and scoring is all Dallas does—is maximized. …
“Jerry Jones is gonna have to just bend on this one and just give this player the extension that he is worthy of because he is basically an offensive weapon for this team. And he has paid CeeDee Lamb, he has paid Jake Ferguson and he has paid Dak Prescott, of course, a couple of times. This is just the next guy in line.”
Cowboys Have Had Special Luck at Kicker
As we have seen, Jones and the Cowboys are increasingly unwilling to “bend” on contracts, and wound up simply trading away Micah Parsons once that situation fell apart. But Aubrey’s value is clear. He is 17-for-18 on field-goal attempts this season, and has a 64-yarder to his credit. In his career, he has made 90.3% of his field goals, and 96.4% on extra points.
Kicker who produce that way can’t be treated as afterthoughts.
“(Kickers) need to be treated as more than just special teamers because the amount of points, the amount of consistency, the amount of reliance they’re being asked to be taking on from their respective teams is as great as it has ever been in the game,” Ginnitti said.
Brandon Aubrey, $32 Million Man?
Entering the season, the highest paid kicker in the league was Harrison Butker of the Chiefs, who got a four-year, $25 million contract that started last year. But that $6.4 million per year is not likely to stand, not with the way that kicking has been emphasized across the league this year.
Combine that with an expected spike in the salary cap, and Aubrey is in prime position to clean up.
“The cap jumps to $300, maybe $305 (million) next year, you aren’t crazy to start hearing four for $32 million for Brandon Aubrey,” Ginnitti said.
“I think we’re heading toward $8 million a year for kickers, not just because of the cap increase, the cash increase and the flux that brings, but it feels like this position is more important than it has been in years if not decades to these NFL teams and their respective offenses. We’ve got guys doing it at a very high level who are going to need a contract this offseason.”
