Injuries Could Force Ravens to Sign Veteran Wideout
BALTIMORE — The Ravens are growing thin at wide receiver because of injuries, which could prompt the team to add a veteran playmaker to stabilize the position.
Tylan Wallace became the latest player to suffer an injury when he had to leave the first preseason game against Tennessee with a sprained knee.
James Proche, who has excelled at training camp, could be out for several weeks with a soft-tissue injury. Undrafted rookies Slade Bolden and Bailey Gaither are also dealing with injuries and didn't play against the Titans.
Both Rashad Bateman and Devin Duvernay, No. 1 and No. 2 on the depth chart, respectively, have also missed practice time this year because of injuries.
The Ravens need depth.
Some of the notable free agents still available are Odell Beckham Jr., Antonio Brown, Emmanuel Sanders, Cole Beasley, Will Fuller and T.Y. Hilton.
The Ravens could also look to make a trade.
Shemar Bridges excelled against the Titans.
With those absences at wide receiver, other rookies have taken advantage of the opportunity, most notably Shemar Bridges, who caught four passes for 62 yards with a touchdown against Tennessee.
"I like Shemar," coach John Harbaugh said. "He’s a big, physical guy. He goes up and gets the ball. He posts a lot of good speeds in practice. He plays hard on special teams in practice. And, not just him. That young receiver corps put up a battle. Every guy stepped up and made some plays. That’s going to be interesting. It’s good to see, and we’ll see how it plays out.”
However, the Ravens could use more experience at wideout. They opted not to add a veteran when Marquise Brown was traded to Arizona, but the situation has changed because of the injuries.
