The hits just keep coming for the Baltimore Ravens. On Friday, head coach John Harbaugh spoke to the media and revealed that rookie defensive back Ar’Darius Washington had suffered a broken foot and would miss the remainder of the season.
Washington reportedly suffered the injury during the Ravens’ practice on Wednesday and was held out Thursday as the team evaluated the extent of his injury. That extent was revealed on Friday.
Washington is officially out for the year and will presumably be placed on the injured reserve in the coming days.
The Ravens have dealt with a string of injuries in their secondary this season and currently have just five healthy defensive backs on their active roster. That’s unheard of.
Washington is hardly the most high-profile defensive back the team has lost to injury this season, but his absence will be felt with the Ravens hurting for depth.
Current look at every DB on the #Ravens active roster:
— Ebony Bird (@Ebony_Bird) November 26, 2021
Healthy:
• Chuck Clark
• Marlon Humphrey
• Anthony Levine
• Brandon Stephens
• Geno Stone
Injured:
• Anthony Averett
• Jimmy Smith
• Ar’Darius Washington
• Chris Westry
• Tavon Young
Ar’Darius Washington’s absence creates another hole in the Ravens secondary
The Ravens have already lost two of their starting five defensive backs for the season in Marcus Peters and DeShon Elliott. Peters was lost to a torn ACL before the season started while Elliott suffered a torn pec and biceps earlier this month and was ruled out for the year.
On top of that, the Ravens’ cornerback depth chart has been ravaged by injuries in recent weeks. Heading into their Week 12 matchup with the Cleveland Browns, four of the five cornerbacks on their active roster are listed as questionable.
Again, it’s not as if Washington was a starter. The undrafted free agent had appeared in just three games this season playing only seven total defensive snaps.
But given the sudden lack of healthy depth in the secondary, every healthy body is a plus for this team.
On top of that, it’s disheartening to see a young player who many believe has a legitimate future with the organization miss out on valuable playing time.
The Ravens’ secondary is getting destroyed by injuries. And the latest injury to Ar’Darius Washington is just another blow to an already banged-up unit.