Christian Thompson Suspended 4 Games

August 23, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars running back Richard Murphy (39) stiff arms Baltimore Ravens safety Christian Thompson (33) on his way to a touchdown in the fourth quarter at M

Baltimore Ravens second year safety Christian Thompson was suspended 4 games today for violation of the NFLs substance abuse policy. The league passed down the punishment earlier today.

Ozzie Newsome divulged that the team had been aware of the situation and was not surprised by the suspension. Christian Thompson is elligible for all offseason conditioning programs, but not for the first 4 weeks of the season. Thompson is expected to appeal the suspension, which is pretty much standard for NFL suspensions of any type.

This is a pretty big blow to the Ravens, many expected Thompson to be the day one starter at Strong safety barring another player being added to the roster. The timing is terrible for the young player who was poised to get his first shot at the big time. It also is a painful move in terms of the Ravens depth in the defensive backfield. The Ravens are already perilously thin at safety, so to lose a player for a quarter of the season isnt ideal. As always though, in Baltimore it is next man up. Thompson might be missed, but the team will get by without him for 4 weeks and then welcome him back. This isnt to huge of a deal.