Ravens LB Tyus Bowser Updates Knee Injury, Future in Baltimore
The Baltimore Ravens were elite on both sides of the ball last season, but Mike Macdonald’s defense reigned supreme as one of the league’s truly elite units.
However, several veterans will leave town in free agency and Macdonald himself left for a promotion, becoming the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks.
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One name that is likely to return is edge rusher Tyus Bowser, who missed the entirety of the 2023 season.
Bowser appeared in just nine games in 2022 after an Achilles tear delayed the start of his season. He hoped to return at full strength in 2023, but fluid in his knee held him out for the entire season.
Back-to-back injury-plagued seasons may cast doubt upon his future in Baltimore. First, he may have to prove he’s healthy.
“I’ll definitely be back next season,” Bowser told Aaron Wilson. “I’ve been able to figure out what the problem is and now I’m in the process of getting myself back to where I know I can be.
“I had surgery, just a knee scope, kind of just took care of that.”
With the fluid gone, Bowser will look to get back to being his productive self. He had two sacks in his shortened 2022 and seven in 2021. He may be tasked with helping replace edge rushers Kyle Van Noy and Jadeveon Clowney.
That is, of course, if he sticks around. General manager Eric DeCosta could move Bowser for additional draft capital or cut him outright. Doing so would incur a $2 million dead cap charge and free up $5.5 million in savings.
“I’ll see,” Bowser said. “We'll have to see how Eric feels and kind of go from there, see what happens.”
His words certainly made it sound like he’d like to be back. He’d go on to praise the organization and its extension for defensive lineman Justin Madubuike.
“I love it out there,” he said. “The Ravens have done so good for me. Love the coaching staff, the players. It’s gonna be an up year, just signed Justin back, so that’s awesome to see a key player back on the team. Hopefully, I’m back up there next year, so we’ll see how it goes.”
If all goes well, Bowser could be poised to take on opposing offensive linemen with Madubuike at his size, potentially bringing an element to Baltimore’s pass rush that it missed last season.
