The Baltimore Ravens can’t get much luck in the injury department this season. With nine players already on injured reserve, including several starters and a bunch of major contributors, seeing defensive end Calais Campbell go to the ground in Sunday’s win over the Indianapolis Colts was yet another reminder of Baltimore’s bad luck. However, the Ravens have a little silver lining to go with Campbell’s injury.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Campbell’s injury isn’t expected to be season-ending, though he’ll likely miss a few weeks. Campbell will undergo more tests to determine the severity of the injury but it’s expected Campbell will miss between two and five weeks, per Rapoport. That echoes what coach John Harbaugh said following the game, saying the injury wasn’t serious but that the team would run tests to get a better picture of things.
This is both a positive and a negative for Baltimore. Campbell has been the Ravens’ most productive pass rusher this season, notching four sacks and 10 quarterback hits. He was also brought in to bolster the run defense, an area Baltimore struggled at times with last season. The early results have been promising with Campbell, seeing the defense stuff the run far more successfully than in 2019.
Losing Campbell for any time is a big blow to the defense but the timing couldn’t be much worse. Over the next five weeks, the Ravens will see three of the top rushing teams in the league, with the Tennessee Titans being the weakest unit at No. 6 in the NFL. Week 11 against the Titans will also be a bit of a revenge game for Baltimore, who was ousted by Tennessee in the playoffs last season thanks to that ferocious rushing attack led by Derrick Henry. At the same time, if Campbell’s injury indeed isn’t season-ending, he should be back in time for the playoffs where the Ravens will really need him.
We’ll likely get a clearer picture when Harbaugh has his weekly Monday press conference but it’s not an ideal situation even if it isn’t as bad as it could have been.
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