Ravens On The Way To Full Strength
By Samuel Njoku
The Ravens took care of business in their three game home stand against the New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Minnesota Vikings. Now Baltimore will have to take their show on the road on Monday Night Football when they go into battle against the Detroit Lions. And with the season coming to a close, it appears as if Baltimore is slowly returning to full strength.
Last season, it was the return of Terrell Suggs and Ray Lewis from what many thought to be season-ending injuries that help catapult the Ravens to a Super Bowl title. This year, it looks as if Dennis Pitta's return may be the missing piece to a team looking to make a playoff run in 2013. The Ravens tight end suffered a major injury to his hip during the preseason that had many wondering if he would be able to play this year. But Pitta put all doubt to rest when he returned last week against the Minnesota Vikings. The young tight end would return in epic fashion as he notched in a big touchdown score.
With the snow and sleet on the ground throughout the game, it wasn't crazy to think that he could have done something to re-aggravate the injury. But Pitta left the game without a scratch and looks to be as healthy as ever. Pitta practiced fully the entire week and is not even listed in the injury report for Baltimore. He'll be ready to go against a Lions defense that has big problems defending the pass.
Of course if Baltimore wants to defend the pass, they'll need to do a better job going after the quarterback. That makes Elvis Dumervil's status for Monday night all the more intriguing. The pass rusher suffered an ankle injury a few weeks ago and missed last Sunday's game against the Vikings. His absence was felt when Matt Cassel was able to make plays down the field with little to no Ravens around him. Dumervil missed practice on Thursday and was only available on a limited basis the rest of the week. He's listed as questionable for Monday and will be a game-time decision. With Matthew Stafford attempting to connect with Calvin Johnson, having Dumervil in his face will be crucial to the Ravens success.
Having a guy like Lardarius Webb to cover Megatron doesn't hurt either. He's also been limited by an abdominal injury in practice. But it appears as if he'll be ready for Monday which makes the defense close to full strength. They'll need to be against this high flying offense.
Baltimore Ravens Injury Report
Questionable:
- LB Elvis Dumervil (ankle)
- S Brynden Trawick (ankle)
Probable:
- CB Lardarius Webb (abs)
For more Ravens news and updates, visit Ravens Central.
Samuel Njoku was born and raised in Baltimore, MD and is a graduate of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore. Samuel has covered the Ravens for Examiner.com since 2010. Prior to 2010, Samuel was an avid blogger and radio personality in Salisbury, MD. Samuel Njoku is a freelance writer covering all things NFL. His work can be found on Examiner.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @Ravens_Examiner.
