The Baltimore Ravens got a bye at the perfect time. Coach John Harbaugh noted several Ravens players, including quarterback Lamar Jackson, are dealing with the flu. Harbaugh didn’t get into specifics on who was dealing with the illness except for Jackson but did say no coaches had been hit yet before knocking on the wooden podium for a bit of good luck.
Illnesses are nothing new for football teams at this time of the year. Earlier this season, the New England Patriots had to deal with quite a large chunk of their roster missing time due to an illness.
While Baltimore is still practicing this week, the more limited schedule and not having to play a game this weekend should do the team some serious good. The extra rest should allow the Ravens to recover from the various bumps and bruises they’ve suffered all season long. But more importantly, the bug they’re dealing with won’t have as big of an impact as it would normally.
Baltimore earned a first-round bye thanks to their 14-2 record and clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoff picture. Not only will they not play in the wild-card round of the postseason, they’ll have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs as well.
Here’s to a cup of hot chicken noodle soup and a quick recovery for those players currently down. Feel better fellas.
