Lamar Jackson — Week 1: Fifty-Four to Flowers, Then a Fumble
2026 NFL Season · Half-PPR Scoring · Monday, Sep 14
Jackson completed seventeen of twenty-five throws for three hundred twenty-four yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, and ran seven times for forty yards and the Ravens' first touchdown. Two hundred twenty-nine of the passing yards came before halftime, on nineteen pass plays; after it the Ravens ran eight pass plays and twenty runs. The one blemish was a sack-and-fumble at his own thirty that handed Indianapolis a short field in a 41–23 win over the Colts.
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Second and nine at the Baltimore 46, seven oh four left in the second quarter, Ravens up 14 to six. Lamar Jackson, from the shotgun, threw short over the middle to Zay Flowers, seven yards in the air, and Flowers went 54 yards for the touchdown. That play was worth +5 expected points added — expected points added is what a play was worth given down, distance and field position — and it was the largest of the 27 pass plays Jackson ran on Sunday. From the extra point on, Baltimore led by 15 or more the rest of the way.
The line: 17 completions on 25 throws, 324 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions, two sacks. 270 air yards on the 24 throws that were not a spike. The 27 pass plays came out at +10.3 expected points in total, and the shape was lopsided by half: 19 pass plays and 229 yards before the break, eight pass plays and 95 after it, and the biggest second-half throw was 53 yards deep left to Chris Moore on third and five from the Baltimore 28, the first play of the fourth quarter. The worst play of the day did not count as a throw: first and 10 at the Baltimore 30 with four 34 left in the half, up 28 to six, sacked, the play-by-play splitting the credit between Key and Latu, and the ball came out, recovered by DeForest Buckner at the Baltimore 15. −6.3 expected points, and four plays later Jonathan Taylor scored.
Seven carries, 40 yards, three of them scrambles. The touchdown was second and five at the Indianapolis five with eight 25 left in the first quarter, Ravens down six to nothing, left end, five yards. The scramble that mattered was third and 16 at the Indianapolis 37 with five 54 left in the first: 16 yards around the right end, pushed out at the 21, Indianapolis challenged the spot and lost. +3.1 expected points, +6.7 points of win probability, which is what a play was worth in the chance of winning the game; three plays later Derrick Henry scored from the four. Baltimore converted three of eight third downs, not counting a kneel-down; the scramble was one. Six throws went to Flowers, six to Mark Andrews, nobody else more than three.
Back in June the preview's read on Jackson was a two-time MVP coming off a QB20 finish across 13 games, a year shaped by availability — about 82 percent over five seasons — and by quiet legs, not by any erosion of the role. Sunday was one game with the legs loud again: three scrambles, a rushing touchdown, 40 yards on the ground. The availability question cannot be answered in Week 1. Baltimore is home to the Saints on Sunday the twentieth.
_Data via nflverse._
When Lamar Jackson's week moves the numbers, you'll know — every episode, in one weekly email.
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