Even if it was, as coach John Harbaugh said, an “honest mistake,” the NFL could impose significant discipline on the Ravens.
They listed quarterback Lamar Jackson as fully participating in Friday’s practice. He should have been listed as limited, because he didn’t take his normal (or any) reps with the starting offense. Although the Ravens changed the designation on Saturday, the league is investigating what was a clear violation of the injury reporting policy.
And while more serve penalties are available if the league determines the Ravens deliberately tried to conceal Jackson’s true status, the timing of the infraction raises the stakes (pun intended) for everyone involved. The incident happened one day after an NBA gambling scandal based on inside information engulfed the entire sports world. And the injury reporting policy includes as a factor “the extent to which public confidence in the NFL, its teams, owners and team personnel has been or may be affected” by the violation.
As one source put it, the infraction creates “very bad optics.” And it arguably forces the NFL to take substantial action.
“It’s an opportunity for the league to make a very strong statement on a very important topic,” the source added.
That could be bad for the Ravens. In the same way that it was bad for the Saints in 2012, when the NFL felt compelled to make a very strong statement on player safety with the bounty scandal.
