Lamar Jackson explains key Joey Porter Jr. interception in Ravens vs. Steelers: 'Just trying to give my boy a shot'

Jacob Camenker

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Lamar Jackson explains key Joey Porter Jr. interception in Ravens vs. Steelers: 'Just trying to give my boy a shot' image

When the Ravens recovered a Gunner Olszewski on the Steelers 7-yard line with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter, it looked like Baltimore would be able to take a commanding lead.

The Ravens were up 10-8 at the time of the fumble recovery, so the game was close. However, it was presumed that a touchdown would give Baltimore an insurmountable lead, as the Ravens had largely held the Steelers in check with their stifling defense throughout the day.

Instead, the Ravens weren't able to get any points. On a second-and-goal from the 5-yard line, Lamar Jackson threw a jump ball to the end zone, where Odell Beckham Jr. was in single coverage against Joey Porter Jr.

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Porter was able to get in front of the veteran receiver and record the first interception of his NFL career.

The Steelers would go on to mount their first touchdown drive of the game after the interception. Kenny Pickett found George Pickens for a 41-yard score that proved to be the game-winner.

So, what did Jackson see on the momentum-swinging interception? He explained his view of the play during a postgame news conference.

"Just trying to give my boy a shot," Jackson said, referencing Beckham. "We just gotta get in sync, that's all."

Jackson also went on to acknowledge that Porter "made a great play" in coming down with the pass.

"We didn't want it to happen, but it happened," Jackson added.

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The interception was one of Jackson's few mistakes on a day during which Baltimore's offense failed to get it going. The quarterback was accurate throughout the contest, but his receivers struggled immensely throughout the contest, dropping numerous passes.

Notably, both Nelson Agholor and Rashod Bateman dropped potential touchdowns. Meanwhile, Zay Flowers fell down while trying to corral what could have been a massive, downfield play.

Jackson was critical of his receivers in wake of their poor performance.

"We don't expect our guys to drop passes," he said. "It happens in NFL football. It just happened at the wrong time."

So, how does Jackson think the team can improve in that area?

"We're gonna get better," Jackson said. "We're gonna go to pads, go to work."

Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker Photo

Jacob Camenker first joined The Sporting News as a fantasy football intern in 2018 after his graduation from UMass. He became a full-time employee with TSN in 2021 and now serves as a senior content producer with a particular focus on the NFL. Jacob worked at NBC Sports Boston as a content producer from 2019 to 2021. He is an avid fan of the NFL Draft and ranked 10th in FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Accuracy metric in both 2021 and 2022.