OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Pro Bowl fullback Patrick Ricard was at the Ravens’ training facility throughout the spring, but he didn’t take part in any on-field workouts.
We found out why on the final day of mandatory minicamp.
Ricard is expected to begin training camp on the active physically unable to perform list after undergoing offseason hip surgery. The 29-year-old appeared in every game for Baltimore last season, earning his fourth straight Pro Bowl selection and remaining one of the NFL’s best fullbacks. Of course, how he’ll fit in new offensive coordinator Todd Monken’s system remains to be seen after Ricard was featured prominently in Greg Roman’s offense over the last few years.
“Ricard won’t be ready to start. He’ll be on PUP to start, but he should be ready shortly thereafter,” head coach John Harbaugh said. “He said he had hip surgery, so there’s a certain timeline to that one.”
Ricard’s absence led to plenty of spring practice reps for fullback Ben Mason, who was selected in the fifth round of the 2021 draft and has yet to appear in an NFL regular-season game.
Starting outside linebacker Tyus Bowser wasn’t present for voluntary workouts earlier in the spring, and he was only a very limited participant over the first two days of mandatory minicamp before sitting out on Thursday. Of course, Bowser didn’t make his 2022 season debut until Week 9 as he recovered from a torn Achilles tendon suffered in the final game of the 2021 campaign, but he played in the final 10 games of the season, which included the playoff loss at Cincinnati.
The 28-year-old is currently dealing with a knee issue, but he should be ready for the start of training camp, according to Harbaugh.
“He just came back, [and] his knee kind of bothered him a little bit,” Harbaugh said. “He was ready to go. He was rehabbing full speed, and then when he came back, his knee kind of flared up for some reason.”
Harbaugh told Josina Anderson of CBS Sports that wide receiver Rashod Bateman received a cortisone injection after having screws removed from his left foot. Bateman underwent season-ending surgery to repair a Lisfranc injury last November and had been a limited participant in workouts earlier this spring.
As for running back J.K. Dobbins, Harbaugh didn’t have an update on the reason why he didn’t participate in minicamp after some reports had indicated he was dealing with a minor soft-tissue injury. Of course, it’s no secret that Dobbins is unhappy with his unresolved contract status as he’s scheduled to become a free agent next offseason. He was in the Owings Mills training facility this week and was spotted by reporters on multiple occasions.
A major knee injury sustained in the 2021 preseason finale and subsequent surgeries have limited Dobbins, 24, to just eight regular-season games over the last two years, which certainly complicates his quest for a contract extension at a position most teams aren’t valuing to the degree they used to.
“I expected J.K. to practice, and it just wasn’t in the cards apparently,” Harbaugh said. “Just get ready for training camp.”
