6:30 PM.
When Tyler Huntley got a text from Lamar Jackson on his way to the bus, he knew he was going to start at quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens.
Go do it today. I'm going to be watching.
Huntley showed the football world that the Ravens can win without their best player, as he led Baltimore to a 16-13 victory over the Chicago Bears. Huntley is the fourth quarterback to record a game-winning drive in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter in his first career start, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
With Baltimore down 13-9, Huntley's 30-yard pass to Sammy Watkins set up the go-ahead, 3-yard touchdown by Devonta Freeman with 22 seconds left in the game.
"I think if I was feeling the pressure, we probably wouldn't have won this game," Huntley said after the game. You have to go with the flow and win the game. We knew we had to score.
Jackson missed the first two games of his career because of his lungs. Jackson fully participated in Friday's practice, but the symptoms returned on Saturday and the Ravens thought he would not play.
Jackson was so sick on the flight that he didn't realize the plane had landed, but he was curled up in a ball in his seat. He didn't attend any meetings on Saturday.
The Ravens were hoping that Jackson would improve by Sunday morning, but John Harbaugh said that he felt worse.
Harbaugh doesn't think this illness will sideline Jackson long-term. I don't know. If it doesn't clear up, they'll keep testing him, but you have to think that it's going to clear up. We will pray for that.
When Huntley walked into the locker room, Jackson was the first player to congratulate him.
The Ravens are still in the hunt for the top seed in the conference. Baltimore moved within a half-game of Tennessee for the top spot in the conference because it found a way to win without Jackson, who had accounted for 82.8% of its offense.
"A lot of times, when you think of the Baltimore Ravens, you think Lamar Jackson, because he's done so much for us," Humphrey said. It was special to see a couple of guys on defense step up. It seems like we didn't flinch.
Even though the Bears came after him, Huntley completed 26 of 36 passes. He was hit on 28 of 44 dropbacks, which is the highest hit rate by a team this season.
"This organization knows how good he is, I know everyone around our facility," said Ravens tight end Mark Andrews. He was going to perform and shine when he got his chance. It's great for the world to see. It's a coming-out party for him, and I can't be more excited about it.
The Ravens are the fourth team in the past 40 seasons to record five or more fourth-quarter comeback wins. It wasn't because of a play by Jackson. 13 quarterbacks were drafted over Huntley in 2020.
Huntley is going to have his game ball framed.
"Sitting back, waiting on the call for the draft, it just felt like I would never get to this point," Huntley said. I'm here." I'm blessed.
