Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson returned to practice this week and hopes to return to the field on Sunday against the Bears, after missing the last two games with a hamstring injury. If he does, he’ll be facing an injury-riddled Bears secondary.
The Bears have been playing without their best cornerback, Jaylon Johnson, since he had core muscle surgery last month. Joining Johnson on injured reserve is cornerback Terrell Smith, while cornerback Zah Frazier is on the non-football injury list.
But while the Bears have managed to get by without those three, on Friday they ruled out two more starters in the secondary, nickel back Kyler Gordon and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson. With five players out, the Bears are as depleted as any secondary in the league.
If Jackson is healthy for Sunday, he should feast against that defense. Although the Ravens are struggling through a difficult season at 1-5, when Jackson was healthy he was throwing the ball as well as he ever has, with a career-high completion rate of 71.6 percent, a career-high average of 9.1 yards per attempt, and an impressive ratio of 10 touchdowns and one interception.
Jackson at 100 percent against this Bears defense could be just what the Ravens need to start a run that gets them back into contention.