The Baltimore Ravens’ locker room has a whole new vibe. It is now quieter, sharper, and way more focused. The ping-pong tables, the TVs, and all those distractions? Gone. Lamar Jackson made sure of that. His bold decision didn’t come from a formal meeting or a heated argument. Rather, it stemmed from frustration and a promise he made before a pivotal game. As left tackle Ronnie Stanley revealed, Jackson didn’t wait for anyone’s approval.

“No, my guy just went straight to the equipment manager and told them,” Stanley said. “We heard him say, ‘If we don’t win this game, we’re taking all the stuff out of the locker room.’ And yeah, we lost that game. All that stuff is gone, you know that next Monday.” The idea was to either focus or fold.

Jackson confirmed the decision himself on Tuesday. “I told Kenico [Hines], our head equipment guy, to take all the games and ping-pong and turn the TVs off. If we could’ve taken the TVs out, they’d have been out too,” he said. “I appreciate Mr. Steve [Bisciotti] for putting that in there for us, but we had to focus.”

The quarterback, sidelined with a hamstring injury, felt the team needed a reset. “I don’t want to say people don’t take the job serious,” he added, “but I didn’t feel like it was the time for that. We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

The impact was immediate. With Tyler Huntley filling in, the Ravens snapped their four-game losing streak, defeating the Chicago Bears and then the Miami Dolphins. The quarterback later confirmed the games wouldn’t return until next season.

In the Miami Dolphins game, he completed 18 of 23 passes for 204 yards and four touchdowns. Tight end Mark Andrews caught two of those scores, while Rashod Bateman and Charlie Kolar added one each. Derrick Henry’s 119 rushing yards powered the offense further.

Meanwhile, Stanley, who’s been battling an ankle issue, returned as a full participant in practice and is expected to start against the Dolphins. His presence helps stabilize a line that’s been key to Jackson’s resurgence.

Just as the Ravens seemed to regain momentum on the field and inside the locker room, another issue surfaced. The organization found itself under scrutiny from the league office, and Lamar Jackson was once again at the center of attention, though for a very different reason.

Ravens fined $100K for Lamar Jackson injury report misstep

The NFL has fined the Baltimore Ravens $100,000 for mishandling Lamar Jackson’s practice status before Week 8. The league has called it a clear violation of the league’s injury report policy

The issue came after the Ravens listed Jackson as a full participant in their October 24 practice, even though he was still dealing with a right hamstring strain. A day later, they ruled him out for the game against the Bears and admitted he should’ve been marked as limited all along.

League sources indicated that the violation was due to negligence rather than any intent to deceive. The Ravens fully cooperated during the review, which helped them avoid a tougher penalty, like losing a draft pick. Still, the fine sent a clear message. The NFL isn’t taking injury report slip-ups lightly.

In a statement, the Ravens took responsibility and confirmed they wouldn’t be appealing the decision.

“We accept the decision by the NFL that we violated the policy and have taken steps to ensure we will be compliant moving forward,” the team said.

Head coach John Harbaugh referred to it as “an honest mistake,” clarifying that while Jackson did practice, he was running the scout team instead of working with the starters, which is a significant distinction under league rules. “Nobody’s trying to hide anything,” Harbaugh said. “There’s no advantage to be gained with that.”

Still, the timing of the mix-up didn’t go unnoticed. The change in Jackson’s status came just as betting lines started to shift. This happened during a week when the league was already under the microscope over sports integrity concerns. While the Ravens insist it was an honest mistake, the incident serves as a reminder that even small errors can spark big questions in today’s NFL.