OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ramping up preparations to meet Houston in the divisional round on Saturday, the Ravens welcomed back wide receiver Zay Flowers to practice, but they’re still waiting on three-time Pro Bowl cornerback Marlon Humphrey.
Flowers (calf) worked on a limited basis in his first practice participation since the Week 17 win over Miami that clinched the No. 1 seed and first-round bye in the AFC. The 2023 first-round pick out of Boston College played through calf and foot injuries in December before sitting out the regular-season finale against Pittsburgh. Flowers led Baltimore in catches (77), receiving yards (858), and targets (108) while also finishing tied for second in touchdown receptions (five) in an impressive rookie campaign.
Humphrey injured his calf early in the Dec. 31 win over the Dolphins, but he was spotted working out on a side field during multiple practices last week, making his absence on Tuesday somewhat surprising. The Ravens aren’t strangers to being without their No. 1 cornerback this season with Humphrey missing a career-high seven games, but they’d certainly like to have him available to slow rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud and a Texans passing attack playing with much confidence after their demolition of Cleveland in the wild-card round.
According to head coach John Harbaugh, standout tight end Mark Andrews had his “best showing so far” in Tuesday’s practice after being designated to return from injured reserve last Friday. The three-time Pro Bowl selection suffered a significant left ankle injury that required surgery just two months ago. Despite playing in only 10 games this season, Andrews led the Ravens in touchdown catches (six) for the third straight season and fourth time in five years.
“It’s great to see. One of our guys is back. One of our main guys is back,” quarterback Lamar Jackson said. “We just need him to keep preparing, keep getting better one day at a time, but we are waiting on him.”
Outside linebacker Odafe Oweh (ankle) returned to practice after sitting out the regular-season finale, but his right ankle was heavily wrapped during the portion of Tuesday’s workout open to media. Wide receiver and punt returner Tylan Wallace remained sidelined with a knee injury apparently suffered in practice last week, but two-time Pro Bowl return specialist Devin Duvernay (back) practiced fully and appears poised to make his return from IR.
The Ravens practiced indoors after a snowstorm hit the greater Baltimore area Monday night into Tuesday morning. The Saturday forecast isn’t calling for precipitation, but the temperature for kickoff is expected to be in the low 20s with winds making it feel even colder.
“It was pretty cold the last couple of weeks [with] a lot of wind, so that’s been good for us,” said Harbaugh about their recent outdoor practices. “I kind of feel good about that. We will get out there tomorrow. I really believe we will be able to get out there tomorrow. The field was frozen today, so we weren’t able to get out there today, but tomorrow looks like we should.”
Houston rested a handful of starters and veterans on Tuesday, but veteran defensive end Jerry Hughes is probably the biggest question mark for the divisional round after sitting out the wild-card win over Cleveland with an ankle injury. Four-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil was listed as receiving a rest day despite tweaking his knee against the Browns.
Texans defensive ends Will Anderson and Jonathan Greenard — who have combined for 19 1/2 sacks this season — were both listed as limited with ankle injuries, but those ailments have been listed on Houston’s injury report for multiple weeks now. Greenard returned from a two-game absence to play in the wild-card round.
Below is Tuesday’s full injury report:
BALTIMORE
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: CB Marlon Humphrey (calf), ILB Del’Shawn Phillips (shoulder), WR Tylan Wallace (knee)
LIMITED PARTICIPATION: TE Mark Andrews (ankle), WR Zay Flowers (calf), LB Malik Harrison (groin), OLB Odafe Oweh (ankle)
FULL PARTICIPATION: WR Devin Duvernay (back)
HOUSTON
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: FB Andrew Beck (back), G Dieter Eiselen (illness), DE Jerry Hughes (ankle), G Shaq Mason (rest), DT Sheldon Rankins (ribs/shoulder), OT Laremy Tunsil (rest)
LIMITED PARTICIPATION: DE Will Anderson (ankle), LB Blake Cashman (knee), DT Maliek Collins (hip), DE Jonathan Greenard (ankle), WR John Metchie (foot), LB Denzel Perryman (ribs), WR Robert Woods (hip)
