BALTIMORE — The Ravens added more explosiveness to the offensive side of the ball while continuing to tweak their defense ahead of Thursday’s tilt with Cincinnati.
Running back Keaton Mitchell was activated from the physically unable to perform list, but Baltimore waived veteran edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue to make room on the 53-man roster, a surprising move after general manager Eric DeCosta failed to add pass-rush help before Tuesday’s trade deadline. Mitchell had been practicing fully since before last Sunday’s win over Denver and makes his anticipated return to game action less than 11 months since suffering a significant knee injury in Jacksonville last December. The 5-foot-8, 191-pound East Carolina product figures to be an immediate factor as a kick returner as well as a change-of-pace option to complement star running back Derrick Henry.
In eight games as a rookie last season, the speedy Mitchell rushed for 396 yards and two touchdowns while averaging a staggering 8.4 yards per carry, which led the NFL among those with a minimum of 45 rushing attempts.
After signing to Baltimore’s practice squad in late September and eventually being promoted to the 53-man roster, Ngakoue collected 1 1/2 sacks and four quarterback hits in five games and had been ahead of young edge rushers David Ojabo and Adisa Isaac on the depth chart. Ojabo was a healthy scratch for the Cleveland and Denver games, and Isaac — a third-round rookie out of Penn State — has been active for just one game as a rookie after dealing with hamstring injuries throughout the spring and summer. A University of Maryland product and 2017 Pro Bowl selection for Jacksonville, the 29-year-old Ngakoue was in his second stint with the Ravens and has 70 1/2 sacks over nine NFL seasons.
The Ravens enter Week 10 ranked fifth in the NFL with 28 sacks, but their pressure rate is just 26th (30.1%), according to Next Gen Stats.
This is the latest shuffling for a struggling defense after the Ravens benched free safety Marcus Williams in favor of veteran backup Eddie Jackson against Cleveland in Week 8 and then returned Williams to the starting lineup and deactivated Jackson for last Sunday’s win over the Broncos. Baltimore also acquired former Pro Bowl cornerback Tre’Davious White from the Los Angeles Rams for a seventh-round pick swap on Tuesday, but he wasn’t expected to play against Cincinnati.
In addition to activating Mitchell and waiving Ngakoue, the Ravens elevated linebacker Kristian Welch and nose tackle Josh Tupou from the practice squad to play against the Bengals on Thursday night.
