The Ravens did not come out of their third straight Week 1 blowout win unscathed. Jimmy Smith will miss some time because of a knee injury.
Smith suffered a grade 2 MCL sprain, John Harbaugh confirmed Monday (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Jeff Zreibec). Harbaugh indicated the veteran cornerback will miss multiple weeks and noted the possibility of an IR-return stay exists. However, the 12th-year Ravens coach did not view that as the probable course of action.
This will mark the fourth straight season in which Smith will have missed time. He missed five games in 2016 and four in both 2017 and ’18, with the latter absence caused by a suspension. He has started 79 games for the Ravens since they selected him in the 2011 first round. Smith, 31, loomed as a cut candidate this offseason, but the Ravens opted to keep him for another year.
Baltimore boasts some depth at cornerback, despite losing Tavon Young for the season. Brandon Carr, second-year player Anthony Averett, ex-Cardinal Justin Bethel and return man Cyrus Jones reside on the Ravens’ roster. The Ravens face the Cardinals, Chiefs and Browns over the next three weeks.