NFL Week 8 Winners and Losers: Lamar Jackson's thumb injury could lead to a sad ending for him and Ravens

It's stunning to think that the Baltimore Ravens could have almost a decade of one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time and not make the Super Bowl once. But it might be headed that way. The Lamar Jackson era was summed up fairly well Sunday. Jackson was back from an ankle injury. The two-time MVP's return brought hope that he could lift the Ravens back to being a Super Bowl contender, starting with a win at the Buffalo Bills. One offensive play in, all that hope was gone. Jackson suffered a thumb injury following through on a pass on the Ravens' first play on offense. He went to the locker room and was ruled out shortly after. Lamar Jackson heads to the locker room after his first pass attempt with an apparent hand injury. pic.twitter.com/JVUQYjJV8H— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) November 1, 2026Jackson was on the sideline for the second half with a black brace on his right hand. By the time he returned to the sideline he was watching undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano make his NFL debut, after Tyler Huntley left with a toe injury. Baltimore fell to 4-4 with a 36-10 loss to the Bills. Normally a .500 record at the beginning of November wouldn’t be the end of anyone’s season but it seems like it for Baltimore after Sunday. The Ravens defense tried to keep the team in the game against the Bills for as long as it could but there was simply no offense without Jackson. That will be the case going forward, and it seems like Jackson could miss a significant amount of time. When Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield dislocated his right thumb earlier this season he missed three games. Jackson has taken his time coming back from injuries, a truth that has been frustrating in Baltimore, and that has to be accounted for. By the time he's back, the Ravens might be well out of the AFC North race. And if it was just one game against the Bills, or even a few weeks going forward, the mood might be different. But it's way more than that. Jackson is in his ninth season with the Ravens, and the dream of an exciting era having a satisfying conclusion might be fading fast.Jackson has one year left on a five-year, $260 million contract extension. Multiple media reports have said there have been no recent negotiations. Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said in January he didn't want the contract issue dragging into April, and now it's November. Both sides have said they want the relationship to continue but it's way more complicated than it was when he was given the franchise tag in 2023 and he came back on a huge deal. Jackson will turn 30 in January. Injuries are becoming a big part of his story. Given how much he relies on his mobility, his game might not age well into his 30s. There was also a scathing piece by the Baltimore Sun after last season that reshaped the Jackson narrative, painting him as a player who is difficult to work with. Everything is more convoluted with Jackson's future than it was a few years ago. It's especially hard to navigate because of how good Jackson is. He's a three-time first-team All-Pro, entered Sunday's games second all time in passer rating while also being the greatest running quarterback ever. The Ravens can entertain trading him — if they don't want to go forward with Jackson after 2027 they'd have to make that move to recoup some value — but everyone knows the chances of finding a quarterback who can be as good as Jackson are almost zero. Seeing Baltimore struggle with Huntley and Fagnano at quarterback gives the Ravens a look at what the future could be without Jackson, and the floor is very low. But if this season goes south, it seems more and more likely that a divorce is on the table next offseason. The story of this season hasn't been written yet. Assuming Jackson returns, there's a chance to set up a totally different ending. And, perhaps he and the Ravens simply come to a contract extension like they did last time. It's not like the Ravens have a succession plan in place. But with one play in Buffalo on Sunday, Jackson's future with the Ravens, what comes next for Baltimore and the ripple effects of those decisions around the NFL became the focus. It seemed like a turning point, and not a good one for anyone involved. Here are the rest of the winners and losers from Week 8 of the NFL season: WINNERSThe 6-2 Pittsburgh Steelers: The Steelers started the season by squeezing out close wins. As the weeks go on, they’re started to look better. The Cleveland Browns are not the litmus test, despite their 5-2 record coming into Sunday’s game. Cleveland still has a bad quarterback situation and can’t live off last-second wins all season. Still, the Steelers left no doubt, which is the sign of a good team. They blasted the Browns 27-6..@Nunless2 having a DAY‼️ pic.twitter.com/2gsIq0MUTe— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 1, 2026Everything was positive. The Steelers defense played very well. The running game was fantastic again with Jaylen Warren leading the way. Aaron Rodgers was efficient during a game in which he didn’t need to do much. The Steelers have a sterling record and are getting better. That’s a sign of good coaching. Mike McCarthy is off to a fine start to his Pittsburgh career.Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers played like a service academy team on Sunday, giving up on the passing game altogether in the rain. It was OK because Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell were fantastic in a 16-0 win over the Atlanta Falcons. The Buccaneers didn’t complete a pass, but Irving had 170 rushing yards and a touchdown and Gainwell added 140 more.Bucky Irving TD! He's up to 169 yards!ATLvsTB on FOX/FOX OneStream on @NFLPluspic.twitter.com/PsIV3YPlxE— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2026it was the first time since 1974 that a team won without a completion. The Buffalo Bills pulled that off in the rain and heavy wind with Joe Ferguson completing 0-of-2 passes.There were completions to Buccaneers, but they came from Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. Penix threw four interceptions. Penix struggled in the conditions, while the Buccaneers didn’t even try to throw it.The running game was enough for the Buccaneers’ second straight win. The NFC South is bad again, so even a team that started 1-5 and has completed fewer than 10 passes the past two weeks should still have legitimate hope of winning the division.Kirk Cousins: Every week, Cousins might be playing for his job. After the Las Vegas Raiders had a four-game losing streak it seemed like a change could be made. Raiders coach Klint Kubiak said last Sunday everything would be considered, including a quarterback change, though he walked that back the next day.Cousins will keep his job at least another week. Cousins played very well, throwing for three touchdowns and getting another on a quarterback sneak as the Raiders beat the New York Jets 38-33. The Raiders allowed the Jets to score on their first six possessions, but the offense was good enough to overcome that. Cousins was very good, and smart in targeting Brock Bowers repeatedly. Bowers had 92 yards and two touchdowns.Cousins even got in a celebration after the touchdown, though he looked very much like a 38-year-old quarterback doing it. Kirko wyd? pic.twitter.com/WxkoNvm4Ge— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2026At some point this season, top overall pick Fernando Mendoza is very likely to start. But it won’t be right away, after Cousins had a superb game.LOSERSJonathan Taylor: The Indianapolis Colts probably should have just deactivated Taylor on Sunday. There wasn’t much point in playing him.The Colts are in for a rough finish to the season. After trading guard Quenton Nelson and defensive lineman DeForest Buckner this week, the Colts were wholly uncompetitive in a 42-7 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. They trailed 28-0 at halftime. It’s the kind of loss that could lead the team to fire Shane Steichen, even if they were seemingly trying to get through the rest of the season with him. The effort from the defense on multiple Jaguars touchdowns was severely lacking. It was an utterly embarrassing performance for the entire franchise. Bhayshul Tuten ends the 3rd quarter with his 2nd TD!@Jaguars are in the 40s!INDvsJAX on CBS/Paramount+Stream on @NFLPluspic.twitter.com/ShxRF0caiJ— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2026Taylor is the one big trade piece left, and the story will unfold one of two ways before the deadline: Taylor’s fantastic career with the Colts will come to an end with the teams in tatters, or he’ll continue to play with a team that might only win a game or two the rest of the season if they can muster a win at all. For Taylor’s sake he will get dealt, because the rest of the Colts’ season will be depressing. Vikings offense: Finally, the Minnesota Vikings’ defense couldn’t save the day.The Vikings should have been able to score plenty against a questionable Detroit Lions defense, but were able to put up 15 points. The defense held strong until Jameson Williams scored a go-ahead touchdown in the final five minutes, and the Vikings’ offense couldn’t answer. Detroit won 19-15, meaning there are no undefeated teams left this season.JAMESON WILLIAMS TDMINvsDET on FOX/FOX OneStream on @NFLPluspic.twitter.com/b87aoClNR0— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2026The Vikings have been great on offense and questionable on offense all season. It didn’t matter for the first six games, which were all wins. Kyler Murray wasn’t the problem on Sunday but he wasn’t great either, with 210 passing yards against a defense that has been giving up a ton of points and yards this season. At some point if the Vikings want to win the NFC North they’ll need some more offensive punch. It’s still lacking. And it will really get uncomfortable in Minnesota if J.J. McCarthy, who they traded a few weeks ago, continues to play well with the Giants.