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The Ravens rank second in the league in rushing, and coach John Harbaugh expects their ground attack to grow stronger in the near future with Gus Edwards (hamstring) on schedule to face the Carolina Panthers in Week 11 and J.K. Dobbins likely to join him “in a few weeks.”
Harbaugh also said safety Marcus Williams, who dislocated his wrist in the Ravens’ Week 5 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, is on track to return in December. “He’s looking good,” he said. “It’s one of those deals where it’s a bone that has to heal, so it’s pretty straightforward, as long as there are no setbacks. There have been no setbacks so far.”
Williams, the team’s top offseason addition, was an every-down player before his injury. Third-year safety Geno Stone has played well in his place.
The Ravens came out of their victory over the New Orleans Saints without any additional significant injuries. Harbaugh said outside linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul tweaked his ankle Monday night, explaining why the veteran played just seven snaps. He said the Ravens held out Pierre-Paul and wide receiver DeSean Jackson (hamstring) for precautionary reasons, but both should be available to face the Panthers after the Ravens’ bye week.
Rookie tight end Charlie Kolar, meanwhile, will likely be activated this week, when his 21-day window to return to the 53-man roster or be sent to season-ending injured reserve expires. His presence could strain the Ravens’ ability to play all their tight ends. They have activated Mark Andrews, Josh Oliver, Isaiah Likely and Nick Boyle for recent games (though Andrews did not play against the Saints with knee and shoulder injuries), with Patrick Ricard also on the field more often than not.
“He’s looked really good,” Harbaugh said of Kolar, a fourth-round pick out of Iowa State who had sports hernia surgery in August. “He’s so talented. He’s so big. He’s got great hands. He wants to do well. He had three good weeks of practice, so I anticipate him being brought up this week. I can’t speak for [general manager] Eric [DeCosta] on that, but that’s kind of how we’re talking about it. We’ve got to find a way to do it, which is a challenge, but I expect Charlie to contribute this year.”
Tight ends coach George Godsey said Kolar simply needs more reps to get in game shape and make up for the practices he missed: “For him, it’s each day, we’re trying to take another step.”
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