The Ravens arrived at Saturday's deadline for making the final roster moves ahead of Week 4 already banged up with five starters ruled out... and they lost another body to Injured Reserve out of left field.
Baltimore announced that second-year outside linebacker David Ojabo has been placed on IR before the Week 4 game at Cleveland, ruling the sophomore out for the next four matchups and making him ineligible until Week 8 at least.
We have placed OLB David Ojabo (ankle/knee) on Injured Reserve.
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) September 30, 2023
We have signed Kyle Van Noy to the 53-man roster.
We have also elevated RB Melvin Gordon III and WR Laquon Treadwell from the practice squad for tomorrow’s game.
In all honesty, we all knew something like this was probably coming and you could see it from light years away the minute Ojabo popped up in the Ravens injury reports, let alone when Baltimore went on and signed OLB Kyle Van Noy off the streets.
Ojabo enters IR having played four snaps against the Colts last weekend before getting ruled out for the remainder of the Ravens' first loss of the season. He had a sack forcing a fumble in Week 1, but that's it for the youngster for now.
Not only is Ojabo getting placed on IR, but making things even worse the franchise listed him there with both ankle and knee injuries. Even struggling in his second year in the NFL, his absence will surely be noted by a ravaged Ravens defense.
Ojabo is coming off a nearly-missed rookie season in which he only appeared in two regular-season matchups as well as defending two snaps in the postseason to wrap up his first pro year.
The defensive end was recovering from an Achilles tear suffered at Michigan's Pro Day ahead of the draft, which helped Baltimore draft him in the second round while he was considered a first-round talent.
The Ravens will use a rotation of Jadeveon Clowney, Kyle Van Noy, rookie Tavius Robinson, and practice-squad member Jeremiah Moon with Ojabo and fellow rusher Odafe Oweh out for Week 4.