Baltimore Sun

Stephens ‘in good spirits’ after being hospitaliz­ed

CB who became ‘acutely ill’ before Sunday’s game among 9 players to sit out practice

- By Ryan McFadden

Ravens cornerback Brandon Stephens and running back Gus Edwards were among nine players who missed Wednesday’s practice, while backup quarterbac­k Tyler Huntley and cornerback­s Marcus Peters and Marlon Humphrey were limited.

Stephens was inactive for the Ravens’ 27-16 loss to the Bengals on Sunday after he “became acutely ill” the morning of the game at the team hotel and was transporte­d to a local hospital in Cincinnati for evaluation, the team said in a statement Wednesday.

Stephens remained in Cincinnati for treatment before returning to Baltimore, “where he is feeling better and in good spirits,” the Ravens said.

Coach John Harbaugh said Stephens’ illness was “surprising” because the secondyear cornerback was ready to play. Harbaugh added that he called Stephens’ parents right away before they flew to Cincinnati to be with their son.

“You knew [he] was OK,” Harbaugh said after Wednesday’s practice. “I don’t think anyone had a real scare of anything bad happening.”

Edwards remains in concussion protocol after leaving in the first quarter of Sunday’s game to be evaluated for a potential head injury.

“It’s just in the process with the concussion protocol right now, so we’ll see where that goes,” Harbaugh said Monday.

The NFL’s concussion protocol requires a player complete five phases of activity — beginning with stretching and balancing activities — before he can return to play. Players must be cleared by the team’s physician, as well as an unaffiliat­ed neurotraum­a consultant who operates independen­tly of the team.

Quarterbac­k Lamar Jackson (knee) missed his 16th straight practice while long snapper Nick Moore was out due to an illness. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley, left guard Ben Powers, defensive lineman Calais Campbell and outside linebacker­s Justin Houston and Jason Pierre-Paul had rest days.

Huntley (right shoulder/wrist), Humphrey (shoulder) and Peters (calf ) were limited participan­ts. Huntley, who is dealing with tendinitis in his right shoulder, did not throw a pass during the portion of practice open to the media. If he can’t play, undrafted rookie Anthony Brown would be in line to make his second straight start.

The Cincinnati Bengals had three players appear on the injury report Wednesday.

Wide receiver Tee Higgins (illness) and starting right guard Alex Cappa (ankle) missed practice, while cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt (groin) was limited. Bengals coach Zac Taylor said Wednesday that Cappa, who was seen at practice on a scooter and wearing a walking boot, will not play Sunday. Max Scharping, who has played only 30 snaps this season, is expected to fill in.

Cappa exited during the final minute of the third quarter Sunday when a Ravens defender was blocked into the back of his legs. He needed assistance getting to the sideline and was then carted to the locker room to avoid putting weight on an injured left ankle.

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