Though the Baltimore Ravens are relatively healthy as they prepare for the regular season, they do have a few players still banged up. One such player is rookie defensive tackle Justin Madubuike, who went down during Saturday’s scrimmage at M&T Bank Stadium.
Madubuike hasn’t been back on the practice field for Baltimore since that point. But no fears, coach John Harbaugh said the injury isn’t all that bad.
“It’s not that kind of an injury,” Harbaugh said following Tuesday’s practice. “It’ll be a little bit but it’s nothing close to season-ending, it won’t even be multiple weeks during the season. He got caught up in a little pile. I’d say he’s a little more than ‘day-to-day,’ maybe ‘week-to-week’ here for a couple weeks and we’ll just see where he’s at.”
While Harbaugh seemed to feel good about where Madubuike is at, the Ravens host the Cleveland Browns in less than two weeks for the start of the regular season. Baltimore still has time to let the injury take its course before they have to play real football, but with roster cuts due this weekend, Madubuike’s injury status could impact the Ravens’ roster decisions.
If Madubuike’s prognosis isn’t much better later this week, Baltimore might have to think about keeping on an extra defensive tackle who might have normally been cut. That would mean limiting depth at another position for at least a few weeks or letting a player hit the waiver wire that’s likely to be poached.
Though the Ravens have completely revamped their defensive line this offseason with the additions of Calais Campbell and Derek Wolfe, Madubuike is expected to get some playing time as a rookie. Baltimore’s defensive line depth chart is full right now but very few players are under contract beyond the 2021 season, meaning the Ravens need Madubuike and other young players to develop quickly if they want a more seamless transition.
