“It looks like it’s going to be a few weeks for Bateman.” pic.twitter.com/I6mD7Q8nhe
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) October 31, 2022
There might not be many fireworks when the Baltimore Ravens visit the New Orleans Saints for a Monday night kickoff next week. Ravens head coach Jim Harbaugh shared updates on several injured players Monday afternoon, highlighting second-year wide receiver Rashod Bateman as a player they don’t expect to play.
“It looks like it’s going to be a few weeks for him, and we’ll have more to report on that later in the week,” Harbaugh told local media. He said that initial tests were encouraging, but further evaluations after their latest game found Bateman’s foot injury is more severe than anticipated.
Bateman, 23, was drafted out of Minnesota last year at the No. 27 overall pick — one slot ahead of the Saints, who selected defensive end Payton Turner at No. 28. Injuries have frustrated the young receiver early in his career. He’s only played 190 on offense this season (trailing behind teammates Devin Duvernay and Demarcus Robinson), catching 15 passes for 285 receiving yards.
Baltimore’s leading receiver is actually tight end Mark Andrews, who is managing shoulder and ankle injuries but leads the team in receptions (42), receiving yards (488), touchdown catches (5), and first down conversions (29). We’ll see if he can go on Monday. Harbaugh said Gus Edwards, one of their top running backs, will be questionable to play with a minor hamstring strain.
Harbaugh also indicated that Baltimore will bring two pass rushers off of injured reserve this week: linebacker Tyus Bowser, who led the Ravens in sacks last season, and David Ojabo, who is still a ways off from seeing the field. The Saints offensive line is playing really, really well right now (they only yielded 2 pressures to the entire Las Vegas Raiders defense on Sunday) but Bowser should be an added challenge for them.
One player Baltimore will be without is free safety Marcus Williams. The former Saints starter suffered a wrist injury early in October and won’t be eligible to return from injured reserve until after this game. We’ll get a better idea of everyone’s status once the first injury report drops on Thursday.