Ravens' Lamar Jackson says injuries led to running less in 2025 - ESPN

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson provided an explanation for why he ran the ball for the fewest times of his eight-year career last season.

«I believe you know… a lot of people know [that] I was hurt last year, so I really could not do anything like I wanted to,» Jackson said after Wednesday's joint practice with the Washington Commanders.

Jackson, who owns the NFL record for most rushing yards by a quarterback, totaled 67 rush attempts last season. In his previous seven seasons, he averaged 144 carries each year.

Jackson's run of injuries last season began in Week 4 in Kansas City, where he injured his right hamstring and missed the next three games. Over the course of November and December, Jackson missed one practice for four straight weeks due to knee, ankle and toe injuries.

Then, Jackson didn't play in a Week 17 game in Green Bay because of a back contusion. In total, he started and finished 11 of 17 games last season.

«It really would not [have] put my team in a good position if I was just running hurt — losing yards, things like that [were] happening,» Jackson said. «But whatever it takes to win, that is what I am all about and [I have] always been about that too.»

Jackson surpassed Michael Vick for the most rushing yards by a quarterback and has produced 6,522 yards rushing for his career. He has also run the ball 1,081 times, 38 attempts shy of breaking Cam Newton's record for most career carries by a quarterback.

But Jackson's scrambles and quarterback-designed runs plummeted last season. He averaged 5.2 carries per game last season after never averaging below eight per game from 2018 to 2024.

Asked if he thinks he will run the ball more like he did in his previous seasons,