Ravens news: AFC final playoff seedings, Lamar Jackson’s status unclear, more

The AFC playoff seedings are set, and the Baltimore Ravens got slotted into the worst scenario given the possible outcomes.

The Ravens’ Week 18 loss handed the Bengals the No. 3 seed while Baltimore wrapped up the No. 6 seed, setting up a rematch in the Wild Card round in Cincinnati on Sunday, January 15 at 8:15 p.m. ET. No coin toss will be necessary for the playoff game since Baltimore’s loss guarantees Cincinnati getting the home field advantage.

As for the rest of the playoff picture, the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills finished in the first and second seed respectively, and the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Chargers took fourth and fifth.

The Miami Dolphins squeezed into the last seed after their win against the New York Jets (and had some help from the Bills).

Given the extenuating circumstances surrounding the cancelled Week 17 Bills-Bengals game, there’s a possibility the AFC Championship game will be held at a neutral site if the Chiefs and the Bills are slated to play each other.

Here’s what trending in Ravens news around the web

Lamar Jackson’s status remains unclear heading into the playoffs (Ian Rapoport, NFL.com)

No one knows when Lamar Jackson will return. Jackson has been sidelined since suffering a PCL sprain in Week 13 against the Denver Broncos, and while some reports have revealed his recovery is going well, the truth is his status remains up in the air.

It was originally believed that Jackson would miss one to three weeks, but Week 18 was his fifth missed game.

Stay tuned for more updates on Jackson’s health.

Justin Houston loses big in Week 18 vs. Bengals (Liz Roscher, Yahoo Sports)

Week 18 was a tough loss for the Ravens, and it was also a tough loss for Justin Houston, who missed out on a chance to hit a $500,000 incentive in his contract.

Houston needed just one sack against the Bengals to reach that incentive, and he thought he had it when he took down Joe Burrow in the fourth quarter. However, that sack was credited to both Houston and Odafe Oweh, which means Houston finished the season with 9.5 sacks and no extra cash.

The veteran outside linebacker already earned a million dollars for hitting the two other escalators in his contract, so he’s probably not too down about it.