Needing replacements for four players placed on the reserve-COVID-19 list on Friday, the Ravens elevated inside linebacker Josh Bynes, offensive tackle Andre Smith, cornerback Kevon Seymour, and defensive tackle Kahlil McKenzie from their practice squad ahead of Sunday’s game at Detroit.
Because those four are replacing players now on the COVID-19 list, the Ravens didn’t have to use any standard elevations for Week 3. Each player on the practice squad is permitted two standard elevations for games, but that doesn’t include being a COVID-19 replacement.
Bynes, 32, returned to the Ravens via their practice squad earlier this month and is now in his third stint with the organization that signed him as an undrafted free agent out of Auburn in 2011. Fondly remembered for making the final tackle in Super Bowl XLVII, Bynes became one of the unsung heroes of the 2019 Ravens when he returned to Baltimore in Week 5 and immediately helped stabilize a struggling inside linebacker group. His impressive football intellect has made him popular with both coaches and teammates over an 11-year career spent with the Ravens, Detroit, Arizona, Cincinnati, and Carolina.
“He knows the game, so anything that you’ll see on film, he’ll be like, ‘They’re about to run this,'” 2020 first-round inside linebacker Patrick Queen said. “That’s him. He’s been a big help since the first day he came in. He’s been giving us keys, giving us clues, giving us stuff to look at on film and how to just play the game. We’re thankful for him.”
With defensive tackles Brandon Williams and Justin Madubuike on the COVID-19 list and defensive end Derek Wolfe missing his third straight game with a back injury, the Ravens needed McKenzie for some depth behind projected Week 3 defensive line starters Calais Campbell, Justin Ellis, and Broderick Washington.
The Ravens also elevated Smith and Seymour in Week 2.
General manager Eric DeCosta chose not to elevate veteran outside linebacker Chris Smith from the practice squad, which was somewhat surprising with edge defenders Justin Houston and Jaylon Ferguson both landing on the COVID-19 list on Friday. That decision would seem to bode well for the Week 3 availability of veteran Pernell McPhee (shoulder) and rookie fifth-round pick Daelin Hayes (knee), who were both listed as questionable on the final injury report.
As for the four players placed on the COVID-19 list, Williams indirectly confirmed on Twitter that he was a close contact and didn’t test positive for the virus. Only unvaccinated players are subject to being deemed high-risk close contacts required to isolate for a minimum of five days. According to ESPN, Ferguson was the only one to test positive.
