Ravens activate Lorenzo Taliaferro
TE Brown is waived; safety Lewis placed on IR
The Ravens had three weeks to evaluate Lorenzo Taliaferro in practice, but the team apparently didn’t need much time to decide the third-year running back would be a good addition to its injury-filled 53-man roster.
After Saturday’s walk-through practice, the Ravens activated Taliaferro from the physically-unable-to-perform list and promoted cornerback Robertson Daniel from the practice squad. To make room, the Ravens waived tight end Daniel Brown and placed reserve safety Kendrick Lewis, who aggravated a hamstring injury in practice last week, on injured reserve.
Taliaferro and Daniel are expected to play today when the Ravens (3-3) look to break a three-game losing streak against the New York Jets (1-5) at MetLife Stadium. The Ravens had two players declared out, and five players, including Lewis, listed as doubtful on the final injury report for today’s game, so they needed more healthy bodies.
Taliaferro hasn’t played in an NFL game since Oct. 1, 2015, against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was placed on injured reserve two weeks later, then had foot surgery. A slow recovery forced him to miss training camp and start the regular season on the PUP list. Taliaferro returned to practice last week, and the coaching staff apparently saw enough to believe the third-year back could help the Ravens on special teams and perhaps in the running game.
A 2014 fourth-round draft pick out of Coastal Carolina, Taliaferro rushed for 292 yards and four touchdowns in 13 games as a rookie, and 47 yards and a touchdown in three games last year. He ended his first two seasons on injured reserve with a foot injury.
It’s unclear how Taliaferro will immediately fit in the running back rotation. Terrance West (Towson University, Northwestern High) is the lead back, and rookie Kenneth Dixon and second-year pro Buck Allen have gotten sporadic carries. The 6-foot, 225-pound Taliaferro has averaged 4.2 yards on 81 career carries, and he ultimately could be a factor in short-yardage situations, an area where the Ravens have struggled.
The Ravens signed Daniel to their practice squad last week. The 25-year-old, who played at Brigham Young, was undrafted in 2015. He briefly was on the Green Bay Packers’ active roster last season but didn’t play in a regular-season game. Daniel has spent time on the practice squads of Green Bay and Washington.
His promotion comes at a time when the Ravens are thin at cornerback. Six defensive backs are on injured reserve. Cornerback Shareece Wright (hamstring) is doubtful to play today, and cornerbacks Jimmy Smith (concussion) and Jerraud Powers (thigh) are questionable.
Lewis started 15 games for the Ravens last year, but the signing of Eric Weddle and Lardarius Webb’s conversion from cornerback to safety pushed the veteran into a reserve role.
Brown was elevated from the practice squad Oct. 5. He played in two games but did not have a catch and was used mostly on special teams. The Ravens felt Brown was expendable because he was fourth on the tight end depth chart behind Dennis Pitta, Crockett Gillmore and Darren Waller.