Though the long-term status of star defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike remains unclear because of a neck injury, the Ravens officially placed the two-time Pro Bowl selection on injured reserve Saturday.
Baltimore also sent Broderick Washington (ankle) to IR, meaning a struggling defense will now be without two of its starting defensive linemen for at least the next four games. The Ravens have provided few details about Madubuike’s long-term prognosis, but concern has been evident since he “came up with some symptoms” in the days after the Week 2 win over Cleveland, according to head coach John Harbaugh. That the organization didn’t start his four-game minimum IR stint before last Monday’s loss to Detroit is another indication that worries go beyond Madubuike missing the next month or so of action.
“He’s out for this game,” Harbaugh said Friday. “That’s as far as I can state with certainty at this point.”
Harbaugh had expressed some optimism about Washington’s Week 4 availability earlier in the week before he was officially declared out Friday, so his placement on IR comes as more of surprise. He played a season-high 42 defensive snaps and was on the field for the final play in the 38-30 defeat to the Lions, so it’s unclear when Washington hurt his ankle.
To replace Madubuike and Washington, the Ravens promoted defensive end Brent Urban and tight end Zaire Mitchell-Paden from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. They also elevated defensive tackles C.J. Okoye and Josh Tupou from the practice squad for Sunday’s game at Kansas City, which does indicate some concern about the Week 4 availability of defensive lineman Travis Jones (knee). The starting nose tackle was able to practice on a limited basis Thursday and Friday after exiting in the fourth quarter of the loss to Detroit. Jones was officially listed as questionable to play against the Chiefs.
To say the Ravens defense will miss Madubuike is an understatement after he registered a combined 19 1/2 sacks over the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Even after sitting out Week 3, Madubuike owns two of Baltimore’s three sacks so far this season, which speaks to how punchless the rest of the pass rush has been to this point. With their top defensive lineman out last Monday, the Ravens allowed a whopping 224 rushing yards to Detroit, which marked the most they’ve allowed in a game since 2017 and the most they’ve allowed in a game that didn’t stretch into overtime since 2012.
The 27-year-old Madubuike is in the second season of a four-year, $98 million contract signed after his breakout 2023 campaign.
