The Ravens promoted cornerback Asa Jackson to the 53-man roster and placed rookie defensive tackle Willie Henry on injured reserve on Tuesday.
A 2012 fifth-round pick out of Cal Poly, Jackson was signed to the practice squad last month after spending the preseason with the Arizona Cardinals. The 5-foot-10, 183-pound defensive back will add depth to the secondary and could also factor into Baltimore’s plans for the return game.
Veteran return specialist Devin Hester has struggled to provide much of a spark and has fumbled four times in eight games this season. Those difficulties helped prompt the Ravens to re-sign Jackson and third-year wide receiver Michael Campanaro to the practice squad in recent weeks.
Jackson entered the 2015 preseason as the favorite to replace the departed Jacoby Jones as the Ravens’ return specialist, but issues with ball security led to him being cut at the end of the preseason. The 26-year-old has not logged a single kick or punt return in his five-year career, but he has shown explosiveness as a returner in preseason games.
In 18 career NFL games, Jackson has collected 30 tackles and three pass breakups.
Henry was inactive for all but one game this season and hadn’t appeared in a single game. The fourth-round pick from Michigan was not listed on the injury report at any point in recent weeks, making this an apparent IR stash for the future.
Despite plenty of pessimism regarding the status of veteran right guard Marshal Yanda and rookie left guard Alex Lewis, neither was placed on IR on Tuesday afternoon. Lewis is expected to miss at least six weeks with a high ankle sprain while Yanda is trying to play through a serious left shoulder injury that’s sidelined him for three of the last four games.
The Ravens also signed guard Jarrod Pughsley and tight end Austin Traylor to their practice squad and cut quarterback David Fales for the second time in the last week. The addition of Traylor could be a sign that Crockett Gillmore is not yet ready to return from a thigh injury as Baltimore has signed a tight end to the practice squad for a third consecutive week with only two healthy tight ends — Dennis Pitta and Darren Waller — on the active roster.
Earlier this month, tight ends Nic Jacobs and then Mitchell Henry were signed and released at the end of the practice week as they were merely used on scout teams during workouts.
