Top 5 Draft Selection Becoming A Real Possibility For Baltimore Ravens
By Samuel Njoku
The Ravens have begun preparations for their game against the Seattle Seahawks. After losing a heart breaker against the Miami Dolphins, Baltimore hopes to get back on the right track with an upset victory over their NFC West opponent. But to do that, they'll need a perfect performance in all three phases of the game.
Ravens TE Nick Boyle Suspended For Remainder of the Season
The Ravens are finding new ways to lose players. Injuries simply aren't good enough anymore. The NFL announced that Ravens TE Nick Boyle is suspended four games for violating their policy on performance enhancing drugs. With four games remaining in the season, Boyle is essentially done for the year.
With Crockett Gilmore (back) and Maxx Williams (concussion) dealing with injuries, Baltimore had no healthy tight ends on the roster. Obviously, the Ravens can't move forward with the depth chart in that condition. In response, Baltimore promote TE Konrad Reuland from the practice squad and signed free agent TE Richard Gordon. To make room, they cut cornerback Cassius Vaughn.
That's a lot of transactions over one suspension. But that's life in the National Football League. The Ravens are hopeful to at least get Maxx Williams back into action, but he's still going through the concussion protocol. They'll learn more as the week progresses.
Top 5 Draft Selection Becoming A Real Possibility
With the season coming to a close, it's obvious that the Ravens will not be in the postseason. John Harbaugh's streak of seasons with records .500 and above will also be coming to a close. Now Baltimore enters a realm of possibility that they haven't experienced in over a decade. If the Ravens continue to fall short, there's a good chance they could be picking in the top 5 of the draft. That's a scary thought for a team with major talent on the payroll. The problem this year is that the same talent has also been on the IR. Baltimore has holes, just not as many as one would think.
With a new class of athletes to choose from, the Ravens could add a premier pass rusher or a shutdown corner alongside Jimmy Smith. That's the beauty of the NFL: Even when you're down, you have every chance in the world to get back up.
Jimmy Clausen to play on Sunday?
With Matt Schaub dealing with what the Ravens have described as a chest injury, Jimmy Clausen may be asked to step up and lead the Ravens offense against the Seahawks. Though John Harbaugh made no commitment to that fact on Sunday, it appears to be the direction the team is heading towards.
"It's going to be probably a tolerance issue and how well he moves around," stated Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh. "We're not going to practice him too much here early in the week. It's good to get Jimmy [Clausen] the reps anyway. Jimmy needs the reps more than Matt does, but if Matt can go, he will."
That's a big if considering how he looked last week against the Dolphins. But if Schaub can't go, the game against Seattle may be more difficult than the Ravens expected.
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.
