OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Ravens could be welcoming back three key members of their offense ahead of the Week 11 trip to Chicago to meet the Bears on Sunday.
Sidelined with respective injuries since before the bye week, right tackle Patrick Mekari and running back Latavius Murray returned to practice as limited participants on Wednesday. Mekari hasn’t played since the Week 7 loss to Cincinnati while Murray has been sidelined since the Week 6 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. While Devonta Freeman has been solid filling in as the starting running back, Baltimore would love to see Mekari return to his right tackle spot, which would allow second-year lineman Tyre Phillips to potentially move back to his Week 1 left guard spot.
“We have the guys coming back who are coming back. They have a good chance to be back,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “We’ll see how they practice. If they practice all week, that would be a good sign.”
Meanwhile, tight end Nick Boyle was upgraded to full participation, which bodes well for his chances of making his season debut against the Bears. Sidelined with a major knee injury sustained just over a year ago, Boyle was reinstated to the 53-man roster last week before being deactivated for the 22-10 loss to Miami.
Boyle owns the reputation for being one of the NFL’s best blocking tight ends, a trait that would help a running game that’s leaned too heavily on star quarterback Lamar Jackson this season. The 28-year-old Boyle signed a two-year, $13 million contract extension in late January.
“He’s a smart player, but he plays hard every snap and he’s able to move guys off the ball five, 10, 15 yards,” fellow tight end Mark Andrews said. “It’s like adding another Pat Ricard. Those type of guys, you can’t replace, so I think it’s going to help spark our run game. And again, it’s having a veteran that’s been here for a long time. He’s really good at his craft, so I’m excited for him to get back. That’s a huge addition for our offense.”
Six players were absent from Wednesday’s practice because of injury or illness, a list headlined by Jackson and center Bradley Bozeman. Harbaugh announced prior to the workout that those two wouldn’t be taking part due to being under the weather, but it wasn’t because of COVID-19.
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It marked the third time this season that Jackson has missed a practice because of a non-COVID illness.
“We had a couple things come up — I guess it’s that time of the year,” Harbaugh said. “We have some sickness. Lamar and Bozeman are both sick, so you won’t see them there today. They got sent home. It’s not COVID; it’s just sick.”
Wide receiver Marquise Brown (thigh), cornerbacks Tavon Young (foot) and Jimmy Smith (hip), and defensive tackle Brandon Williams (shoulder) were also absent. While Harbaugh said Monday that Young still has a chance to play this week after exiting the Miami game early, Brown was on the field for the Ravens’ final drive and didn’t appear to be laboring physically. Seeing very little action since the bye week, the 33-year-old Smith played only 10 defensive snaps against the Dolphins after taking only one defensive snap against Minnesota.
Williams has missed back-to-back games since hurting his shoulder against Cincinnati on Oct. 24.
Coming off their bye week, the Bears were still without former NFL Defensive Player of the Year and edge rusher Khalil Mack (foot), standout receiver Allen Robinson (hamstring), two-time Pro Bowl safety Eddie Jackson, and 335-pound defensive tackle Akiem Hicks (ankle) for Wednesday’s practice. That was clearly a disappointing development for a Chicago team that’s lost four straight games.
Below is Wednesday’s full injury report:
BALTIMORE
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: C Bradley Bozeman (illness), WR Marquise Brown (thigh), OLB Justin Houston (non-injury), QB Lamar Jackson (illness), CB Jimmy Smith (hip), DT Brandon Williams (shoulder), CB Tavon Young (foot)
LIMITED PARTICIPATION: OL Patrick Mekari (ankle), RB Latavius Murray (ankle)
FULL PARTICIPATION: TE Nick Boyle (knee)
CHICAGO
DID NOT PARTICIPATE: TE Jimmy Graham (non-injury), DT Akiem Hicks (ankle), DB Eddie Jackson (hamstring), LB Khalil Mack (foot), WR Allen Robinson (hamstring), LB Danny Trevathan (knee), OL Elijah Wilkinson (back)
LIMITED PARTICIPATION: WR Darnell Mooney (foot), LB Alec Ogletree (ankle), RB Damien Williams (knee)
FULL PARTICIPATION: TE J.P. Holtz (concussion), K Cairo Santos (elbow)
