Another disappointing chapter was added to the story of the 2015 Ravens on Tuesday as rookie wide receiver Breshad Perriman was placed on injured reserve, ending his season before it ever started.
The first-round pick from Central Florida sprained the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee on the first day of training camp, an injury initially diagnosed as a bruise that would only keep him out for a day or two. After making very slow progress, Perriman briefly returned to the practice field in late September before pulling up lame in a pre-game workout at M&T Bank Stadium on Sept. 27.
A few days later, Perriman visited renowned orthopedist Dr. James Andrews and underwent arthroscopic surgery and received a platelet-rich plasma injection to help speed the recovery process. Shortly after the procedure, head coach John Harbaugh called the injury “one of the all-time slowest-healing sprained PCLs ever,” and Perriman never appeared to get close to returning to practice before Tuesday’s decision.
“Breshad has worked hard to come back from his injury,” general manager Ozzie Newsome said in a statement, “but after discussing his current condition with our medical staff and Breshad, we have decided that putting him on injured reserve for the remainder of the season is our best course of action.”
The 26th overall pick of April’s draft and the first receiver selected in the first round by the Ravens since Mark Clayton in 2005, the 6-foot-2, 218-pound Perriman was expected to immediately fill the void of Torrey Smith after the speedy veteran signed with San Francisco in the offseason. Instead, Perriman becomes the first first-round pick in Ravens history to miss his entire rookie season.
Though acknowledging the clock was ticking on the rookie receiver for this season, Harbaugh had expressed hope earlier this month that Perriman would be able to play in the final four games, which would have given the Ravens the opportunity to evaluate him despite being on track to experience their first losing season since 2007. Now, they’ll have to wait until next year.
“It’s a huge disappointment not being able to play my first year in the NFL, but I will come back harder than ever,” Perriman wrote on Twitter. “Thanks to all of the Ravens fans for the support.”
With Perriman remaining an unknown and veteran receiver Steve Smith announcing his intentions to retire before suffering a season-ending Achilles injury on Nov. 1 — though many feel the injury could prompt him to return in 2016 — the wide receiver position couldn’t be in worse shape as the Ravens must also renegotiate quarterback Joe Flacco’s contract this offseason.
The Ravens made several other roster moves on Tuesday, cutting wide receiver and return specialist Jeremy Ross and cornerback Asa Jackson. On Sunday, Ross lost a fumble on a punt return for the second time in the last three games while Jackson committed two 15-yard penalties on special teams in the 22-20 loss to Jacksonville.
On Monday, Harbaugh criticized both players for their performances in Sunday’s game.
Dealing with an ankle injury, Jackson was given the waived-injured designation and would revert to injured reserve if he clears waivers.
To fill the three open spots on their 53-man roster, the Ravens signed veteran cornerback Cassius Vaughn, tight end Chase Ford, and rookie wide receiver Kaelin Clay. Vaughn was with Baltimore during the preseason while Clay and Ford were signed off the practice squads of Detroit and Minnesota respectively.
After being cut by the Ravens in early September, Vaughn hasn’t been with another team, but he owns 138 career tackles, 24 pass breakups, seven interceptions, two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery in his five NFL seasons.
Ford has played in 20 career NFL games (five starts), producing 34 catches for 391 yards and a touchdown. Clay has yet to appear in a game, but the Utah rookie is considered an intriguing option in the return game after being drafted in the sixth round of this year’s draft.
