Perriman misses practice with calf injury
It’s apparently not related to receiver’s knee problems; Harbaugh won’t give details
Wide receiver Breshad Perriman’s absence from Ravens practice Wednesday is apparently not related to the knee injuries that have hindered him since he was selected in the first round of the 2015 NFL draft.
Perriman was held out of practice because of what the team characterized as a calf injury. He caught one pass for 35 yards in Sunday’s13-7 win against the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium, and did not appear to be limping or otherwise impaired in the locker room afterward.
Coach John Harbaugh did not disclose any details on Perriman’s status for Sunday’s road game against the Cleveland Browns, saying: “The injury report will be out later. So I’m just going to leave it at that for where he’s at. We’ll see.”
Perriman’s first year has featured plenty of bumps. He has had to overcome a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that wiped out his rookie season and then a partially torn ACL in his left knee that kept him on the physicallyunable-to-perform list until Aug. 18.
Inside linebacker C.J. Mosley did not practice because of a thigh problem. But the third-year starter who made two tackles Sunday said the injury is minor.
“I’m feeling pretty good,” Mosley said. “Just wanted to make sure that I didn’t go out there and make anything worse. So I’ll be out there tomorrow.”
Other Ravens players who did not participate Wednesday were outside linebackers Elvis Dumervil (foot) and Za’Darius Smith (ankle) and rookie running back Kenneth Dixon (strained MCL in left knee).
Center Jeremy Zuttah’s absence from Wednesday’s session was explained as not injury-related. Flacco ‘elite’ to Suggs: Terrell Suggs wears his heart on his sleeve and his feelings about the eliteness of quarterback Joe Flacco, apparently, on his chest.
The outside linebacker appeared at his weekly news conference in a hat, athletic shorts and a black T-shirt with an artistic rendering of Flacco’s face. Underneath it was one word: “ELITE.” This 35-yard first-quarter reception over the Bills’ Stephon Gilmore, left, was the only pass Breshad Perriman caught in Sunday’s game. He did not appear after the game to be hurt.
This is Suggs’ new method of positive reinforcement. When Flacco had good games early in his career, Suggs said, he would post a photo of a “hip-hop video vixen” in his locker. When Flacco struggled? “I put something quite the opposite. I’ll let him tell you about it.”
“He’s having a good game, I’m going to try to keep the confidence thing going,” Suggs said. “But when he drops a bad one, I have something for him.”
Flacco first saw the new threads when he picked up tight end Dennis Pitta on the way to Sunday’s game. Pitta emerged from his garage wearing Flacco’s face and the hotly debated descriptor. “Man, why you got my face on your shirt?” Flacco recalled asking him, but there were already plenty more teammates with one. West expecting to get booed in Cleveland: Terrance West is realistic about the reception he will get from Browns fans when he returns to FirstEnergy Stadium on Sunday. “They’ll probably boo me,” he said.
To be fair, Browns fans might still be irked that West, Cleveland’s third-round pick in the 2014 NFL draft, did not pan out as they had hoped. In his rookie season, West (Northwestern High, Towson University) rushed for 673 yards and four touchdowns in 14 games, starting six, but was stuck in a rotation with Ben Tate and Isaiah Crowell before getting traded to the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 6, 2015.
Last season, West played for the Titans and the Ravens. In fact, he traveled to Cleveland as a member of each organization, which is why he doesn’t appear to be concerned about returning to the city this weekend.
“It’s just another game,” he said. “It’s not about me going back to Cleveland. It’s about the Baltimore Ravens going up there and playing the Cleveland Browns. It’s not about Terrance West going back to Cleveland. That’s not even my home. So like I said, it’s just another game.” Powers “closer to 100” percent: In seven years with the Indianapolis Colts and Arizona Cardinals, Jerraud Powers had played in every season-opening game. That streak ended when the cornerback was forced to miss Sunday’s win against Buffalo.
Powers, 5 feet 10, 193 pounds, signed May 13 to be the primary nickel back, paired with cornerbacks Jimmy Smith and Shareece Wright. But he injured his ankle when his cleat got caught in the turf in a preseason game Aug. 20 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and was held out for the rest of the preseason.
Powers vowed to play Sunday against the Browns. “I’d say I’m closer to 100” percent, he said. “There’s still some soreness every now and then, but it’s just something you deal with. But today, I felt great at practice. I got through the whole practice without any problems. I felt fine.” End zone: Pitta will return to Cleveland for the first time since Sept. 21, 2014, when he dislocated his right hip for the second time. “The last time I was on that field, it wasn’t the best memory,” Pitta said. “I don’t anticipate really even thinking about it. I’m just excited for another opportunity to be on the field and get a little bit better.” … Cleveland listed five players on its injury report, including three starters. Left tackle Joe Thomas did not practice for noninjury-related reasons. Wide receiver Terrelle Pryor (shoulder) and right guard John Greco (back) participated fully.