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Flacco (hip) absent from practice, Jackson in line for third straight start

Posted at 3:00 PM, Nov 28, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-28 15:00:21-05

As another practice week begins the ambiguity regarding the Ravens quarterback situation continues. 

There was no sign of Joe Flacco on the field on Wednesday and no clear status on his injured hip from the head coach. 

John Harbaugh did not comment on whether Flacco has been medically cleared.

“He’s progressing very well. I can tell you that. He’s doing well,” said Harbaugh.

All signs point to rookie QB Lamar Jackson making his third consecutive start Sunday in Atlanta. He has led Baltimore to back-to-back wins over the Bengals and Raiders.

“I would say I’m confident. A lot confident even more than I was last week. Not even just the Cincinnati game,” said Jackson.

Now comes the first taste of an NFL road game for Lamar.

“I love road games. Just to try to make the crowd, make it like our home environment. I like to do that, silence the crowd,” he said.

“It ain’t going to get more hostile than what he’s already had here,” said veteran Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs. “Ya’ll don’t get to see how we treat him at practice. He’s been prepared for a little hostile environment. We’ll try to tone it up a little bit more for him.”

“There’s a new set of issues with playing on the road. That will be another level - crowd noise, cadence, snap counts, communication. But, he’s up to it. I’m looking forward to seeing how he does,” added Harbaugh.

When you have Jackson take the reins under center you’d expect the rushing numbers to increase and that’s just what has happened.  

Baltimore has pounded out 509 yards on the ground over the past couple weeks. That’s most in the NFL during that span and the a franchise record for back-to-back contests. 

Rookie running back Gus Edwards has 233 of those yards.

“I’ve been put in a great situation where I have been given some reps when the opportunity presented itself and I just tried to make the best out of it,” said Edwards.

Atlanta is ranked 25th in the NFL in run defense. 

Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerWMAR and Facebook