Tag: Geno Stone

Texans claim rookie S Geno Stone from Ravens, place on exempt-commissioner permission list

The Houston Texans placed a waiver claim for Baltimore Ravens rookie safety Geno Stone.

The Houston Texans continue to evaluate their roster even as the regular season draws to a close with a game to go.

The Texans claimed rookie safety Geno Stone from the Baltimore Ravens. The club them placed Stone on the exempt/commissioner permission list.

Stone played in two games for the Ravens from Weeks 9-10. In the Nov. 8 game at the Indianapolis Colts, Stone played 19 snaps on special teams in the 24-10 victory. In the Nov. 15 Sunday Night Football matchup in the pouring rain at the New England Patriots, Stone played 19 special teams snaps once more and added two defensive snaps in a 23-17 loss.

Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey endorsed the move by the Texans, and Baltimore safety DeShon Elliott similarly praised the claim by Houston.

Baltimore selected Stone in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft from Iowa.

Ravens have 0 players on Reserve/COVID-19 list after activating S Geno Stone

The Baltimore Ravens have activated S Geno Stone from the Reserve/COVID-19 list, officially having 0 players out for COVID-19 now.

After months of dealing with an outbreak of the coronavirus, the Baltimore Ravens have finally cleared their Reserve/COVID-19 list of names. According to the NFL’s transaction report, the Ravens activated safety Geno Stone from the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday.

Stone had initially been placed on the COVID-19 list on Dec. 1, right as Baltimore’s coronavirus outbreak had begun to slow down. But while other players came back after their five- or 10-day stay had been up, Stone was kept on the list for nearly the entire month.

It’s unclear if Stone will be able to return 100% immediately after dealing with the coronavirus for so long. But the Ravens could certainly use the help in the secondary if he is able to play. With injuries at cornerback making an already thin secondary even thinner, having another defensive back able to be plugged into the defense could end up being the difference in a win or loss in the coming weeks. And with Baltimore needing to win their final two games to have the best shot of earning a playoff berth, Stone’s return is important.

Stone had played in just two games this season, getting the bulk of his snaps on special teams. He had been selected in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft, and though he initially made the 53-man roster, Stone was put on the practice squad before getting called up.

While the season isn’t over and anything is possible in a pandemic, it’s nice for the Ravens to have everyone back again.

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Ravens place S Geno Stone on Reserve/COVID-19 list

The Baltimore Ravens added their 23rd player to the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Wednesday after safety Geno Stone tested positive Tuesday.

The Baltimore Ravens had 10 consecutive days with a positive COVID-10 test result before Wednesday ended the streak. That trend had continued yesterday as safety Geno Stone tested positive for the coronavirus and players were informed on the plane to Pittsburgh. As expected, the Ravens placed Stone on the Reserve/COVID-19 list Wednesday, according to a press release from the team.

Stone’s addition to the Reserve/COVID-19 list makes it a total of 23 players added since last Monday. Baltimore’s outbreak initially kicked off last Monday following a Week 11 loss to the Tennessee Titans, seeing both running backs Mark Ingram and J.K. Dobbins test positive.

Stone had been placed on the practice squad earlier this season, making his debut in Week 9 against the Indianapolis Colts. Though Stone was active for two games, he only saw two defensive snaps, spending a majority of his time on special teams where he played a total of 38 snaps. While the loss of Stone for this game is just another name in the deluge, every warm body counts as the Ravens needed to elevate 10 players from the practice squad Wednesday against the Steelers.

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Ravens place Nick Boyle, Terrell Bonds on IR; add Geno Stone, Luke Wilson

The Baltimore Ravens swap around tight ends after putting Nick Boyle on injured reserve and signing Luke Wilson

The Baltimore Ravens, already thin at a number of positions due to injuries, got even more injured in Sunday’s loss to the New England Patriots. On Tuesday, Baltimore made some roster moves to remedy the situation, putting Nick Boyle and Terrell Bonds on injured reserve while elevating Geno Stone from the practice squad and signing Luke Wilson to replace his spot.

It was fairly obvious on the field but coach John Harbaugh confirmed Boyle had suffered a season-ending knee injury. After trading Hayden Hurst to the Atlanta Falcons this offseason, that leaves the Ravens with Mark Andrews as the only tight end on a team that loves multiple-tight-end sets. Remedying the lack of depth, Baltimore announced they signed veteran tight end Luke Wilson to the practice squad.

Wilson has been around the league for quite some time, primarily with the Seattle Seahawks, entering the NFL as a fifth-round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. Over eight years in the league, Wilson has caught 110 passes for 1,295 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was most recently with Seattle, playing just 10 offensive snaps over five games this season before getting cut two weeks ago.

Though Wilson isn’t much of a receiving threat, neither was Boyle. Where Baltimore will primarily use him is as an in-line blocker with the potential to run routes and get involved in the passing game that way. With Boyle being so important to the success of the rushing attack, Wilson will have big shoes to fill if he gets called up from the practice squad.

In addition to Wilson’s signing, the Ravens brought back rookie safety Geno Stone from the practice squad to the 53-man roster. Stone had been among the players elevated from the practice squad the last two weeks, ending the number of times he could be brought up for gameday. However, in both games, Stone’s primary role was on special teams, seeing just two total defensive snaps compared to 38 special-teams snaps.

Bonds landing on injured reserve makes the fifth cornerback placed on the list by Baltimore this season — joining Anthony Averett, Tavon Young, Iman Marshall, and Khalil Dorsey. The Ravens have done an excellent job with a “next man up” philosophy but the injuries are beginning to take their toll on the team as they reach the second half of the 2020 season.

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Ravens activate CB Khalil Dorsey to 53-man roster, add S Geno Stone to practice squad

The Baltimore Ravens moved CB Khalil Dorsey to the 53-man roster, putting S Geno Stone in his spot on the practice squad ahead of Week 5.

The shoe has finally dropped from the Baltimore Ravens waiving rookie safety Geno Stone. It turns out Baltimore simply moved their defensive backs around from the 53-man roster and practice squad.

According to the NFL’s transaction report, the Ravens signed cornerback Khalil Dorsey from their practice squad to the 53-man roster. Stone cleared waivers and was signed to Baltimore’s practice squad to fill Dorsey’s void there.

Sadly, these moves aren’t quite what Ravens fans were hoping for. When Stone was originally waived, many hoped Baltimore was going to be adding a veteran wide receiver or pass rusher to help with one of the Ravens’ biggest problems through four games. Unfortunately, the moves were really just more of a logistical issue for Baltimore.

With slot cornerback Tavon Young out for the season with a knee injury, the Ravens are a little thin at cornerback and need the extra bodies for games. Though Stone had been on the Ravens’ 53-man roster for all four games prior to his release, he had not been active in one game this season.

According to coach John Harbaugh on Friday, the move was partly because the Ravens had used all of Dorsey’s gameday activations from the practice squad and still needed help at cornerback. This season, teams are allowed to bring up a player from the practice squad to be active for a game, but are limited in the number of times they can use that feature on a given player. By adding Dorsey to the 53-man roster, Baltimore can have him active for Sunday’s game, giving them a chance to activate someone else from the practice squad if they wish while also keeping Stone around for further development.

Though Stone is now on the practice squad, that doesn’t mean his time with the Ravens is over. Harbaugh had glowing praise for Stone and indicated his time on the field was coming too.

“Geno [Stone] definitely is going to play,” Harbaugh said Friday. “There’ no doubt in my mind that he’ll play.”

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Todd McShay: ‘There’s no denying’ Ravens got better in 2020 NFL Draft

With 10 picks in the 2020 NFL Draft, ESPN draft expert Todd McShay believes the Baltimore Ravens got even better than their 14-2 2019 season

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The Baltimore Ravens added 10 new players through the 2020 NFL Draft. For ESPN draft expert Todd McShay, Baltimore’s haul was one of the best in the league for both filling needs and finding great value.

McShay looked over the entire 2020 NFL Draft to find the teams that made the biggest improvements. Though the Ravens held the best record last season and are already Super Bowl LV favorites, McShay believes Baltimore had one of the best drafts in the NFL and improved.

“There’s just no denying that Baltimore, a 14-win team in 2019, got even better in April.”

The Ravens entered the draft with inside linebacker clearly being their biggest need. Following the departure of C.J. Mosley last year and both Josh Bynes and Patrick Onwuasor this offseason, Baltimore didn’t even have enough depth at the position, much less a starting lineup. In true Ravens fashion, they saw one of the top-rated linebackers fall into their laps with the 28th overall pick, selecting LSU’s Patrick Queen. McShay considers Queen to be a “plug-and-play starter who can be the quarterback” of Baltimore’s defense.

McShay specifically noted the selection of Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins in the second round. Though he noted it wasn’t one of the Ravens’ immediate needs, McShay pointed to Mark Ingram’s contract having a potential out after this season and called Dobbins “one of the better pass-protection backs in this class.”

McShay was especially excited about the selections of defensive tackle Justin Madubuike and wide receiver Devin Duvernay, calling them both “pure steals” since Baltimore grabbed them in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft. McShay figures both will contribute immediately, with Madubuike potentially getting “15-20 snaps per game” as a rookie.

Sixth and seventh-round selections, wide receiver James Proche and safety Geno Stone respectively, were picks McShay also called out for their value. Though both players are a little undersized, McShay loved Proche’s hands and Stone’s instincts, making both long-term factors for the Ravens.

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Ravens sign 6 of 10 draft picks, including RB J.K. Dobbins

The Baltimore Ravens are quickly getting their massive draft class under contract, officially signing six of their 10 2020 NFL Draft picks.

The Baltimore Ravens aren’t messing around when it comes to getting their 10-man 2020 NFL Draft class signed. The Ravens have been making quick work of the paperwork, officially having six of their 10 picks now signed.

The Ravens announced they’ve signed the following of their draft picks to rookie contracts:

RB J.K. Dobbins – 2nd round

DT Justin Madubuike – 3rd round

OL Ben Bredeson – 5th round

WR James Proche – 6th round

S Geno Stone – 7th round

Baltimore was the first team in the NFL to sign one of their draft picks, getting fifth-round defensive tackle Broderick Washington Jr. under contract on Tuesday. With six of their draft picks under contract, the Ravens have just four players remaining, including first-round pick Patrick Queen.

Though the rookie pay scale makes getting contracts ironed out a lot easier than a decade ago, it’s still not a done deal from the moment the phone rings on draft day. In recent years, we’ve seen picks get signed just before training camp begins and even players hold out into the regular season over intricacies in their contracts. The Ravens getting so many of their draft picks signed this early eliminates just one hurdle in what has already been a tumultuous offseason.

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Ravens earn ‘B-‘ grade for S Geno Stone pick in 7th round

This grade would have probably been a lower if it didn’t add some depth to the safety position.

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The Baltimore Ravens addressed a minor question mark with their final pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, taking Iowa safety Geno Stone at No. 219 overall.

Draft Grade: B-

This grade would have probably been a bit lower if it didn’t add some depth to the safety position, something the Ravens needed to address after the departure of Tony Jefferson.

What I’m not sold on is Stone’s lack of speed and size to be a game-changing safety in this league, but then again that’s not really what you’re looking for in the seventh round.

That said, he does have some upside as a hybrid box and coverage safety and offers an interesting option behind Chuck Clark and Earl Thomas, especially with the way Don Martindale has found ways to use various defensive backs in his schemes.

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Instant analysis of Ravens drafting Iowa S Geno Stone in 7th round

The Ravens get a productive safety in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft in Iowa’s Geno Stone. He’ll be a depth player with some upside

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The Ravens waited until the seventh and final round of the 2020 NFL Draft to add a piece to their already deep secondary. They bring in Iowa safety Geno Stone with pick No. 219, who was the 2nd-team All-Big 10 in 2019.

Stone plays with incredible instincts and has a nose for the ball, as evidenced by his eight turnovers over his last two seasons. He also has the strength needed to cover receivers and tight ends over the middle and keep them from running a flawless route. Stone isn’t afraid to come up in run support, as he doesn’t wait to make a run to the ball carrier.

Stone lacks the speed and height to truly be a ball-hawking safety in the NFL, running a 4.62-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine. His lateral quickness is a problem as well, showing up mostly when he gets beat in the red zone. His height and inability to adequately high point a jump ball means that he could get feasted on by the superb competition in the NFL if used in more direct coverage.

As a hybrid deep and box safety, Stone could be an intriguing depth option with some upside for Baltimore. The Ravens don’t need someone great at safety, but they do need depth behind Earl Thomas and Chuck Clark, which they get in Stone.

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Ravens select Iowa S Geno Stone with No. 219 after Vikings trade

The Baltimore Ravens use their second pick from the Vikings trade to get a depth safety in Iowa’s Geno Stone in the seventh round.

After trading up into the sixth round with the Minnesota Vikings and taking SMU wide receiver James Proche, the Baltimore Ravens used their second pick acquired to get Iowa safety Geno Stone at No. 219 in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

In three seasons at Iowa, Stone played in 32 games, getting six interceptions and returning one for a touchdown. He also made 126 combined tackles, including four for a loss and had one sack to go with four forced fumbles.

Stone lacks the ideal size and speed for a typical free safety. But he’s made up for that with good football intelligence and by reading the quarterback to put himself around the ball. Despite his smaller size, he isn’t afraid of coming up in run support but could improve his technique a little bit. With the Ravens, he can play a little of both strong and free safety, which Baltimore tends to merge together at times anyway.

Safety wasn’t one of Baltimore’s immediate needs but it was a long-term one we identified earlier. With Earl Thomas getting older, getting some immediate depth and a potential heir was something that could keep the position from becoming a much more pressing need as early as next season.

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