ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — After waiting three weeks for Lamar Jackson to return, the Baltimore Ravens now face the possibility of playing the rest of the season without him.
Jackson requires surgery for a thumb injury he suffered in Baltimore’s offensive opener against Buffalo on Sunday and may not return in 2026, Ravens coach Jesse Minter said.
“It will be surgery. He will go on injured reserve,” Minter said after Baltimore loses 36-10. “It’s a difficult matter.”
Jackson missed three games with an ankle injury before being injured on a pass attempt to Zay Flowers. The two-time MVP was unable to complete his follow-up, and his right hand hit the arm of Bills passer Greg Rousseau.
Jackson immediately left the field and showed his thumb. He knelt before reaching the touchline, then was escorted to the tunnel. Jackson eventually returned to the sideline, where he watched the second half with his thumb in a splint.
Tyler Huntley replaced him before suffering a toe injury in the second quarter, leaving the Ravens to turn to emergency quarterback Joe Fagnano. Baltimore fell to 4-4, has lost three straight and has a home game against Jacksonville looming on Thursday night.
“It’s tough,” Minter said. “But you know, there’s no testimony without testing. And so we’ll do everything in our power to keep moving forward, to keep this thing going.”
Huntley was injured when he was sacked by safety Cole Bishop and fumbled on third-and-8 at the Baltimore 40. The Ravens called Huntley’s return questionable before ruling him out to start the third quarter. Minter had no immediate update on Huntley’s status, and it’s likely Baltimore will need to add a quarterback before facing the Jaguars.
Fagnano, an undrafted rookie out of UConn, made his NFL debut when he took over in the following series. He caught the attention of coaches on the sideline after taking a hit to the knee from Bills defensive lineman Ed Oliver, who was penalized for roughing the passer but remained in the game.
After finishing 10 of 21 for 91 yards with one interception, Fagnano said he expects to be healthy enough to play Thursday.
“Yes, I think so,” he said. “After a football game you will always have bumps and bruises.”
Baltimore went 1-2 without Jackson as his offensive production dropped dramatically. With Huntley behind center, the Ravens scored 63 fewer points and averaged 3 fewer yards per play than in three games with Jackson.
Energized by the return of their star quarterback, the Ravens allowed the Bills to score a touchdown on their first drive, then were deflated by Jackson’s injury.
“It’s very difficult when a warrior like (Jackson) goes down,” linebacker Roquan Smith said. “We’re all human, so there’s an emotional side to it. But it comes down to the circumstances. And certainly, the circumstances are not where we would like things to be when you lose the best quarterback in the NFL, in my opinion, when he’s healthy.”
“It’s a very unforgiving game,” Smith added. “As hard as it is, but this game doesn’t care who you are at any time. And no matter what you did for the game, the game will slap you in the face at any time.”
Minter, in his first season as Ravens coach after replacing John Harbaugh, accepted the responsibility of rallying his team under difficult circumstances.
“It’s definitely my job to make sure we stay together, that we don’t point fingers, that we support each other, that we believe in the next man up mentality,” Minter said. “We really have to have confidence in the guys we have and move forward.”
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AP Sports Writer John Wawrow contributed to this report.
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