Two days after making his season debut as a COVID-19 replacement in the 19-17 win at Detroit, Ravens inside linebacker Josh Bynes has been promoted to the 53-man roster.
Now in his third stint with Baltimore, Bynes signed to the practice squad in early September after being waived by Carolina at the end of the preseason. The 32-year-old started all 16 games for Cincinnati last year and was last with the Ravens in 2019 when he — along with veteran L.J. Fort — signed in early October to help stabilize a young inside linebacker group that had played poorly in the first month of the season. Bynes played in 12 games and made seven starts to help the Ravens finish with a franchise-best 14-2 record that year. The 2011 undrafted free agent from Auburn spent the first three seasons of his career with Baltimore before going on to play for Detroit and Arizona.
Rotating with starter Malik Harrison and veteran backup Chris Board at the weak-side inside linebacker spot next to 2020 first-round pick Patrick Queen on Sunday, Bynes played 14 defensive snaps and made four tackles against the Lions. Harrison played a season-low 17 defensive snaps as both he and Queen have languished in pass coverage so far this season. The struggles of these second-year inside linebackers have made the loss of Fort to a season-ending knee injury that much more glaring after the 31-year-old was Baltimore’s most consistent inside linebacker against the run and pass last year.
Tackling has also been a substantial problem for Queen, but that’s been a unit-wide problem over the first three weeks of 2021, a carryover from last season when the Ravens finished with the second-most missed tackles in the NFL, according to Pro Football Reference. Queen and strong-side outside linebacker Tyus Bowser combined for five missed tackles against the Lions on Sunday, according to PFF.
Improving in that area remains a major point of emphasis despite the obvious challenge of sufficiently practicing the skill while needing to keep players healthy for games.
“You have to practice tackling in team periods. You have to put the pads on as much as possible,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “We haven’t had a chance to do that during the regular season yet, unfortunately, because of our [injury] situations and the timing of how the games have fallen. You have to front people up when you’re in shells. You tackle with your feet and your arms and hands. You get your feet to where they’re supposed to be and you wrap and you run through tackles. You get yourself there with your eyes on the right angles.
“Those are all the things we have to do better, and our guys know that. It’s easier said than done in full speed.”
In addition to promoting Bynes to the 53-man roster, the Ravens activated nose tackle Brandon Williams from the reserve-COVID-19 list. Williams disclosed on Twitter over the weekend that he hadn’t tested positive, meaning he was deemed a high-risk close contact to outside linebacker Jaylon Ferguson — who tested positive for the virus on Friday — and had to isolate for five days. Only unvaccinated players are required to isolate for the five-day period when considered a close contact to someone testing positive.
Ferguson, edge rusher Justin Houston, and defensive tackle Justin Madubuike remained on the COVID-19 list as of Tuesday evening.
The Ravens also signed running back Nate McCrary and safety Jordan Richards to their practice squad. McCrary, a rookie free agent from Saginaw Valley State, spent the spring and summer with Baltimore before being waived at the end of the preseason and claimed off waivers by Denver. The Broncos released McCrary late last week.
Offensive tackle Andre Smith, cornerback Kevon Seymour, outside linebacker Chris Smith, and defensive tackle Kahlil McKenzie were protected on the Ravens’ practice squad for this week.
Baltimore also announced Tuesday that five-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle and Super Bowl XLVII champion Haloti Ngata will officially be inducted into the Ravens Ring of Honor at halftime of the Oct. 11 prime-time home game against Indianapolis.
