Getty Mark Ingram warming up before a Ravens game.
The Baltimore Ravens are coming off a bye week into a critical Week 8 on the field, and the status of one of their best players remains firmly in the air.
Mark Ingram was dinged up with an ankle injury last week, and the hope was that the bye would help him heal in time to play in the critical showdown for the AFC North against the Pittsburgh Steelers. While the injury might not be that severe, there’s still no word on whether or not Ingram will be ready to go by the time Sunday rolls around.
Updating the status of things Monday following the team’s week off, Ravens coach John Harbaugh explained that Ingram is still up in the air to play the biggest game of the season for the Ravens thus far considering the AFC North stakes.
“We’ll see. It wasn’t a major injury, it’s a matter of how he feels as the week goes on.”
Coach Harbaugh on Mark Ingram’s status for this week:
Harbaugh said:
“We’ll see. It was’t a major injury by any stretch. Just a matter of how he feels as the week goes on.”
Even if the injury wasn’t major, the ramifications of it could be. Missing Ingram would be a huge blow to what the Ravens’ offense wants to do to control the game by running the ball, and that’s a huge way they beat Pittsburgh last season.
Mark Ingram’s Importance vs. Steelers
If Ingram couldn’t go against the Steelers, that would be tough news for the Ravens considering how good he has been through the years and how good he is at running the rock for Baltimore now. The Ravens have other players to rely on of course, namely Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins, but there is no replacing Ingram completely within the offense. He packs a punch with his tough style as well as his leadership on the field. Obviously, he will be needed in a big way for this matchup.
Ravens Injuries During 2020
Save for these latest ailments playing out, the Ravens, for the most part, have been a healthy team this season in terms of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis as well as their own personal health in between the lines with injury. Baltimore’s biggest loss so far has come in the form of cornerback Tavon Young, who was hobbled in the team’s win against the Houston Texans earlier this season wth a knee injury and lost for the rest of the year. Week to week, the Ravens have had their share of bumps and bruises like all teams in the league and most recently, they have been trying to keep quarterback Lamar Jackson healthy as well as several other players on their offense and defense.
Hopefully for the team, the bye has come at just the right time for the dinged up Ravens, who look to use it to their advantage.
Whether or not Ingram returns to the lineup this week is up in the air, but the hope is that he can come back eventually and help play a key role for the team during the second half push of the season.
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