The Ravens ruled out two-time MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson (ankle) on Friday yet again but still faced numerous critical medical decision to make before Sunday’s kickoff in Cleveland.
Rookie coach Jesse Minter is facing his first AFC North opponent with an injury report that stretched to 19 names midweek. Baltimore ruled out Jackson, center Cam Jurgens (concussion), defensive lineman Broderick Washington (ankle) and rookie tight end Matthew Hibner (hand). The team has had to juggle its offensive line every week all season, Jurgens has not appeared in two games since general manager Eric DeCosta made a desperate move to land him and Baltimore was once again dealing with injuries to guards as well, with John Simpson playing through a groin problem and Andrew Vorhees (foot) and Emery Jones (ankle) both listed as questionable.
And the Ravens had to decide if third-round pick Ja’Kobi Lane (wrist) was healthy and conditioned enough to play his first game since Week 1, when the promising youngster suffered an injury in the first half and has not played since. Lane was one of the stories of the summer and the preseason and quickly worked himself into a starting role with the team, and with Baltimore dealing with injuries at tight end and with $13M “move” tight end Mark Andrews struggling mightily, having a big receiver (6-foot-4) available for backup quarterback Snoop Huntley is a big deal.
Lane was cleared to play for the first time since Week 1, while Vorhees was not.
Final Decisions
The Ravens welcomed back $30M edge rusher Trey Hendrickson after a two-week absence due to a procedure on his finger. They are as healthy as they have been all season up front on defense – Washington is a rotational run stuffer at this point – all season. The defense in particular has been in better health than the offensive side of the ball, yet the offense has carried the team to the 4-1 start.
Undrafted rookie quarterback Joe Fagnano was once again active and serving as the primary backup to Huntley. The Ravens are hopeful that Jackson, who has yet to take the practice field since suffering the ankle injury just before halftime in Week 4, can return to practice this week with the Bengals traveling to Baltimore in Week 7, with Minter continuing to refer to him as “day-to-day” this week and Jurgens should also be cleared to begin practicing fully next week barring any setbacks with his return from concussion protocol.
Rookie receiver Elijah Sarratt was a healthy scratch as was safety K'von Wallace
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