OWINGS MILLS, Md. — A week ago, the Ravens looked like a relatively healthy team with all but one player on the 53-man roster practicing.
Losing four starters in the 2023 season opener drastically changed that outlook and will test their depth for an important Week 2 trip to Cincinnati.
Though running back J.K. Dobbins (Achilles tendon) was the only Baltimore player to suffer a definitive season-ending injury, the Ravens don’t yet know how long they’ll be without free safety Marcus Williams, who exited in the second quarter of the 25-9 win over Houston with a pectoral injury. It marks the second straight year that Williams will be sidelined for an extended period of time after he missed seven games with a wrist injury last season. Williams missed only five games over his first five seasons with New Orleans before signing a five-year, $70 million contract with the Ravens at the start of free agency in 2022.
“He’s consulting with the doctors right now. He’ll be out for a while — may not be a season-ender though,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “There are different options that he has, so we’ll keep you updated on that soon because he’ll have to make a decision soon on a possible surgery there.”
Williams appears likely to be placed on injured reserve, which would sideline him for a minimum of four games.
The news sounded better for left tackle Ronnie Stanley (right knee sprain) and center Tyler Linderbaum (right ankle sprain), who exited Sunday’s game on back-to-back drives in the fourth quarter. Harbaugh described them as “week to week right now” while acknowledging they could miss this Sunday’s clash with Cincinnati, which isn’t an admission the 16th-year head coach typically makes unless that’s the very likely outcome.
The loss of Williams puts the Ravens in a difficult spot after the secondary was already playing without three-time Pro Bowl cornerback Marlon Humphrey, who continues to recover from mid-August foot surgery. Harbaugh didn’t rule out the possibility of Humphrey playing against the Bengals, but he admitted it’s still “pretty early in the process” for the 27-year-old to return to game action.
Against the Texans, defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald deployed a number of three-safety looks before Williams’ departure with backup Geno Stone entering the game and Kyle Hamilton moving to the nickel, the position he played so effectively as a rookie last year. Stone filled in effectively for Williams last season and is a quality backup, but he doesn’t bring the playmaking upside as the man who’s intercepted four passes over his first 11 games as a Raven. You also wonder how much Macdonald will be able to move Hamilton around unless he’s comfortable using nickel back Ar’Darius Washington or veteran Daryl Worley at a safety spot.
It’s difficult to move defensive pieces around without the same level of trust in them.
“We’re still going to play great defense. I still feel really good about our defense because Geno is going to be Geno,” Harbaugh said. “He’s not going to try and be Marcus and he’s going to play the way he plays, and he’s proven he can play very well back there. I have all the confidence in the world in Geno, Daryl Worley, and anybody we might bring in here. We have some options.”
According to ESPN, Baltimore is adding veteran safety Duron Harmon to its practice squad. The 32-year-old started 16 games for Las Vegas last year and has made 78 starts over a 10-year career.
Harbaugh said the Ravens offense needs to be “more in sync” than it was in the opener, but that won’t be easy with two key members of the offensive line potentially sitting out against the AFC North rival Bengals. Patrick Mekari would start at left tackle in place of Stanley and Sam Mustipher would be elevated from the practice squad to replace Linderbaum under that scenario, which would be quite a departure from having new left guard John Simpson flanked by two former first-round picks.
The offensive line had its problems against the Houston front even before the injuries, which prompted offensive coordinator Todd Monken to use fullback Patrick Ricard for more six-man protections. You’d again expect to see plenty of Ricard in that capacity against Cincinnati’s pass rush on Sunday.
The Ravens hope to welcome back three-time Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews against the Bengals after he sat out the opener with a lingering quadricep injury. Of course, it originally sounded like a foregone conclusion that Andrews would play against Houston before he remained only a limited practice participant and Baltimore decided to hold him out.
Confirming Dobbins would undergo surgery to have his left Achilles tendon repaired later this week, Harbaugh didn’t sound as though the Ravens would be seeking outside help at running back — at least for now. Former two-time Pro Bowl selection Melvin Gordon is expected to be elevated from the practice squad to serve as depth behind Gus Edwards and Justice Hill, and undrafted rookie Keaton Mitchell could also become an option after recovering from a shoulder injury that landed him on IR after final roster cuts.
“I think we’re good. I like the guys we have,” Harbaugh said. “Melvin, he’s here for a reason and certainly didn’t expect it to be this quick, but that’s why he’s here. That’s why he wanted to stay here because he likes it here. He likes the offense, and he likes the environment, and he’s heck of a talented guy. You saw him in the preseason. He’s a proven back, so I’m very, very glad that he’s here.”
