Ravens say no “definitive answer” whether Madubuike has time to be ready for Week 1

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ravens defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike hitting the sled Monday marked a notable step in his return from last year’s career-threatening neck injury.

That it was the first time we’d seen him engage in that much physical contact since training camp opened four weeks ago speaks to how very deliberate his summer ramp-up has been. Though completely understandable considering how serious his injury was, the slow increase in activity prompts a fair question with the season opener in Indianapolis less than three weeks away.

Is there enough time for the two-time Pro Bowl selection to be ready for Week 1?

“That’s something we’ll look at. I don’t know if I’ve got a definitive answer for that,” head coach Jesse Minter said. “I think every day is like, ‘How did today go? What more can we maybe do?’ I don’t know the answer to that right now. We’ll continue to look for that and see where that’s at. But again, we feel really good about him being in a good position to help us.”

Like he’s done all summer, the 28-year-old Madubuike broke away to work out on a side field roughly 30 minutes into practice after completing that positional group work and hasn’t yet participated in any 11-on-11 work, let alone engage in live contact. Wednesday’s joint practice with Washington will mark the last meaningful work against an opponent for starters and established veterans before the Sept. 11 meeting with the Colts.

With Minter being so noncommittal about even the idea of Madubuike playing in Week 1, it’s fair to wonder when the practical target date might be for him to play in a game for the first time since Week 2 of last season. The Ravens could simply elect to deactivate him on game days until he’s ready, but there’s also the option of placing Madubuike on short-term injured reserve, which would sideline him for at least the first four games of the regular season while allowing Baltimore to devote his 53-man roster spot to another player. Madubuike isn’t eligible for the physically unable to perform list since he was activated from that in time for the first full-squad practice on July 29.

While it’s difficult to say when exactly we’ll see the man who collected a total of 25 sacks over his last three healthy seasons, Minter expressed optimism about the progress Madubuike is making.

“I think he’s in a great place. Again, it’s a progression week to week,” Minter said. “You see him like hitting the sled and doing things like that. I feel good about where that’s headed, and we will just continue on that process. I think he’s in a really good spot.”

Pivotal week in center battle

With the injured Danny Pinter out of the conversation, the competition for the starting center job is down to 10-year veteran Ethan Pocic and the inexperienced Jovaughn Gwyn, making this a pivotal practice week.

The latter drew the start in the second preseason game against Minnesota, playing 19 offensive snaps before being replaced by Pocic late in the first half. Gwyn — who spent the last three seasons in Atlanta developing under offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford before following him to Baltimore — also saw more extensive and earlier playing time than Pocic in the preseason opener. Though Pocic, 31, has nearly nine times more career starts (97) than Gwyn has career offensive snaps (11), the former is still working his way back to pre-injury form after tearing his Achilles tendon with Cleveland last December.

That reality coupled with the distinct distribution of reps to this point in the summer makes it fair to wonder if Gwyn, a 2023 seventh-round pick out of South Carolina, has the upper hand for at least the open of the season. Minter said he hopes to give both opportunities with the starting offense in the coming days.

“He’s really powerful. He’s really athletic,” said Minter about the 27-year-old Gwyn. “There’s still a lot to get better at, I would say, but we certainly like where he’s at. We like where Ethan’s at. I think he’s really asserted himself into that competition. I think that’s going to be an ongoing thing here over these next couple weeks.” 

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After being noncommittal about the return timetable for Pinter’s reported torn patellar tendon last week, Minter confirmed Monday that the knee injury is “looking like a season-ending thing.”