Henry set to return soon
H. Hurst has ‘good chance’ to play; J. Smith back in fold
Ravens defensive tackle Willie Henry, who has missed the first month of the regular season while recovering from an abdomen injury, is expected to return to practice this week, coach John Harbaugh said at his weekly news conference Monday.
Harbaugh said after the Ravens’ penultimate preseason game in late August that Henry had surgery on an umbilical hernia and would be out for “a few weeks.” The hernia, he said then, was not football-related and might have been pre-existing.
“We’ll see how we does,” Harbaugh said Monday.
The 2016 fourth-round draft pick had 33 tackles and 3½ sacks in14 games last season, starting three. Even in his absence, the Ravens have posted the NFL’s fifth-best rush defense (82.5 yards allowed per game) this season, led by defensive tackle Brandon Williams and nose tackle Michael Pierce.
Rookie tight end Hayden Hurst, who returned to practice Wednesday for the first time since suffering a stress fracture in his foot in late August, was a limited participant throughout the week. He was listed as questionable entering Sunday night’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, raising hopes that the team’s top overall draft pick might make his NFL debut in prime time.
But he sat out the Ravens’ 26-14 win at Heinz Field, a breakthrough victory in which tight ends Maxx Williams, Nick Boyle and Mark Andrews combined for 10 catches and 99 receiving yards.
“I don’t think the docs and trainers were comfortable with just the one week back,” Harbaugh said Monday. “I’d have probably been more comfortable than they were. But it was smart, so we’ll just have to see how he does this week. Obviously, [he] has a good chance to play, but you’ve got to get through full practices and get ready to go.” J. Smith returns to team: Jimmy Smith didn’t greet the team at the airport in the wee hours of Monday morning as New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram did, but the cornerback did return to the Ravens’ headquarters in Owings Mills the day after his four-game suspension was Defensive tackle Willie Henry, right, missed the first month of the regular season while recovering from an abdomen injury. lifted.
“I haven’t spoken with Jimmy yet,” coach John Harbaugh said Monday afternoon. “I just haven’t had a chance with what we’re doing. Rumor has it he got here at 8 o’clock, I guess. He did not beat me in, for the record, but he was here and he’s been working out and those kinds of things. So we’re expecting him to practice Wednesday. Of course, we’ll have to make sure he’s physically ready to go. We’ll meet with trainers and all those kind of things to make sure he’s ready to go physically.”
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Smith sat out the first quarter of the season for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy after league investigators concluded that the 30-year-old cornerback threatened and inflicted emotional abuse on his ex-girlfriend. Smith is also seeking to rebound from a torn left Achilles tendon he suffered against the Detroit Lions on Dec. 3. Backing Collins: Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins leads the league in fumbles lost with three, but running back Alex Collins is part of a 10-member group that trails Cousins with two lost fumbles each.
Collins, who was stripped by Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Coty Sensabaugh and safety Sean Davis (Maryland) at the Steelers’ 2-yard line with 12:39 left in the second quarter in Sunday night’s 26-14 win, fumbled the ball four times and lost two of them last season.
“One thing about Alex is that his style lends to that a little bit,” Harbaugh said. “I think that’s been kind of an issue throughout his career because he’s such an elusive guy and he tries so hard to make big plays all the time. But sometimes you expose the football when you do that, so yeah, fumbling is always troublesome. You can’t have it. It’s not worth it. So he’ll focus on that.” Mosley ‘confident’ in knee: C.J. Mosley picked up where he left off. The middle linebacker finished Sunday night with a team-best eight tackles and added one pass breakup in his first game since suffering a bone bruise in his left knee during a 34-23 loss at the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 13.
Mosley, a three-time Pro Bowl selection who missed only the third start of his career when he was scratched from a 27-14 win against the Denver Broncos on Sept. 23, said he felt much better about playing against the Steelers than against the Broncos.
“It was just a day-to-day thing,” he said. “It wasn’t any ligaments or anything like that. So it was pretty much just how I felt going into the game. Last week, I wasn’t 100 percent ready. I wasn’t really 100 percent ready this game, but I felt more confident, and that was the main thing.” Extra points: Harbaugh said the team dedicated a game ball in memory of Bobbi Engram, the daughter of wide receivers coach Bobby Engram and his wife, Deanna, who died Aug. 25 at the age of 20 and had battled sickle cell anemia. “Everybody’s kid gets to travel to a game, and it’s been just a great experience for the coaches’ families,” Harbaugh said. “Her list, her No. 1 — she would have had it because she’s one of the oldest kids — her No. 1 game was at Pittsburgh. That’s the one she wanted. She was with us today in our hearts, and that’s where the game ball went.” … The RavensSteelers game Sunday night was the highest rated prime-time program on TV with a 12.3 rating and 21 share overnight, making it the highest rated Ravens-Steelers game since 2011. The rating and share in Pittsburgh was 42.7/60, while Baltimore had a 32.3/49, according to the Nielsen overnight ratings provided by NBC.