The Baltimore Ravens have finally reached their long-awaited bye week, and boy do they need it.
Heading into their bye, the Ravens are dealing with some notable injuries on both sides of the ball. Every team is at this point in the season, but most of them have had a chance to rest up and regroup for a week earlier in the season. Baltimore has not had that luxury until now.
Arguably the most notable player dealing with an injury is wide receiver Rashod Bateman, who left in the second half of Sunday’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Luckily, it appears he avoided any serious injury.
“[Bateman’s] knee got sore in the game. He had treatment today,” head coach John Harbaugh said Monday. “It’s not a long-term thing, so it’s something like all the guys have, these kinds of things, I think. A lot of guys have these kinds of things late in the season. The bye week will really help him; I do believe that.”
Bateman, a 2021 first-round pick, is enjoying easily the best season of his young career. The former Minnesota star has 35 receptions for 574 yards and five touchdowns, more touchdowns than he had in his first three seasons combined. He did not have a target before leaving Sunday’s game, however.
Another key skill position player dealing with injury is second-year running back Keaton Mitchell, who was inactive on Sunday. Mitchell recently returned from a torn ACL he suffered late last season, but has only played four offensive snaps in three games while mainly handling kick return duties. Fellow running back Rasheen Ali handled kick returns in Mitchell’s absence on Sunday.
According to Harbaugh, Mitchell may still be dealing with the lingering effects of last year’s injury.
“No one expected physical challenges, but there’s definitely physical challenges with what [Mitchell]’s gone through,” Harbaugh said. “That was a very serious knee injury, and he came back quick as you possibly could from it. I also wanted to give Rasheen a chance. He’s been working hard, and you saw it on the kickoff return – saw how explosive he looked on that. It just made sense to kind of give Keaton a little rest [and] give Rasheen a chance. I like those two guys. They’ll both be in the mix going forward.”
The Ravens return to the field when they face the New York Giants on Dec. 15, and hopefully, they’ll be a bit healthier by then.
