The Baltimore Ravens are expected to have a reformed defense entering Sunday’s matchup with the Minnesota Vikings. The secondary has started to turn a corner since acquiring safety Alohi Gilman from the Los Angeles Chargers last month. Now, with their latest addition of outside linebacker Dre’Mont Jones ahead of the trade deadline, their pass rush is looking to follow suit.
The trio of Kyle Van Noy, Mike Green, and Jones should start to cause some problems for opposing offensive lines, but they still need some depth. They signed that exact depth to the practice squad in October in veteran Carl Lawson, and while he was trending toward making his Ravens debut in Week 10, that will have to wait for at least another week.
Head Coach John Harbaugh made it sound like Lawson was on track to play, but the 30-year-old was not one of Baltimore’s practice squad elevations on Saturday. Defensive tackle Taven Bryan was the lone elevation, meaning Lawson will not be able to suit up in Minnesota.
Ravens use their third and final practice squad elevation on Bryan.
— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) November 8, 2025
Carl Lawson was not elevated so he will have to wait to make Ravens debut. https://t.co/NsvXVYhwgf
Ravens set to be without Carl Lawson again on Sunday
While Lawson is not expected to be a game-changer on the Ravens’ defensive front, he has plenty of experience bringing down quarterbacks. He has 32 career sacks across seven seasons and 89 games played. That experience will not be brought to the table against the Vikings.
The Ravens are set to rely on Van Noy, Green, Jones, and possibly David Ojabo on Sunday. Baltimore will put Jones’ versatility on full display, allowing him to play on the interior more than he did with the Tennessee Titans, so they could find themselves in need of more pass rush help on the outside. That could set Ojabo up for a bigger role than expected in this matchup. If they continue to let Jones operate on the outside, too, then rookie defensive tackle Aeneas Peebles could suit up for the first time since the Ravens’ Week 5 loss to the Houston Texans.
While it is tough to be without Lawson’s services for at least one more week, maybe he will not have as big a role in Baltimore as soon as some initially expected. He was not signed until Week 8, and while Harbaugh said he was “probably ready to go,” he may need an extra week to get up to speed.