John Harbaugh updates fans on Ravens returnman Deonte Harty’s health.
Discussing the possibility of Harty coming off of IR to face off against his former team in Week 20, John Harbaugh noted that he wasn’t really sure, as the 27-year-old has returned to practice, but he isn’t sure if that means he’ll be on the field against the Bills.
“I’m not sure yet. [Deonte Harty] had been gone for quite a while, and he had the physical situation, had some personal things he was dealing with, but he was working hard in practice last week. We just need to make sure a guy is ready, in shape and mentally ready. He tells me… In his mind, he’s ready; I can tell you that. He wants to play, and we’ll just have to see, but Steven [Sims] is a guy that we also have confidence in,” Harbaugh told reporters.
While Harty has been out, the Ravens have earned some quality production from their other return men, with Tylan Wallace averaging 11.2 yards per punt return on six, Steven Simons averaging 4.6 on five, and Desmond King leading the clubhouse with a 12.7 yard per return average on just three attempts. Still, if Harty can go, it wouldn’t be the worst idea to give him a shot, as he was signed to play this role for the Ravens and did it effectively earlier this year before a knee injury took him out of action. Considering he has experience in Matthew Smiley’s special teams unit, who knows, maybe Harty could have some insight into ripping off a big return against the Bills in the Divisional Round.
