Ravens LB Teddye Buchanan Tears ACL
2:05pm: Harbaugh confirmed on Monday that Buchanan has in fact torn his ACL. The team hopes a return in time for training camp next summer will be possible (h/t Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic).
8:59am: The Ravens’ defense recorded a shutout on Sunday. The unit will likely be without another starter for the remainder of the season, however. 
Linebacker Teddye Buchanan was carted off the field yesterday after suffering a knee injury during punt coverage. After the game, head coach John Harbaugh expressed concern a lengthy absence would be in store and it appears that will indeed be the case. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports Buchanan is feared to have suffered an ACL tear.
Further testing will take place today to confirm the diagnosis. Presuming that takes place, Baltimore will be without a starter at the second level of the defense. Trenton Simpson began the year in a timeshare with Buchanan for playing time, but the latter quickly took on a full-time role. A fourth-round rookie, Buchanan has totaled 93 tackles in 2025; that figure ranks second on the team behind only Roquan Smith.
Instead of continuing in his role down the stretch and potentially into the postseason, Buchanan’s attention will now turn to a lengthy recovery process. The 23-year-old’s availability for the start of next season will be in question provided an ACL tear winds up being confirmed in his case. Meanwhile, a Ravens front seven which is already without All-Pro defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike for the remainder of the year will move forward with a different tandem at the linebacker spot.
Smith will be tasked with remaining one of the Ravens’ top producers on defense. It now remains to be seen who will start alongside him at the other LB position, though. Simpson – a third-round pick in 2023 who has totaled 16 starts in his career – is the likeliest candidate. The Clemson product took over as a first-team presence after Buchanan exited, registering nine tackles. Undrafted rookie Jay Higgins resides on IR, so veteran special teamer Jake Hummel rounds out Baltimore’s depth chart at the moment.
Yesterday’s win moved the Ravens to 7-7 on the year. Top spot in the AFC North is still within reach, and winning the division is likely the only path to a postseason berth for Baltimore. If that is to be achieved, Buchanan will not be able to play a role the rest of the way.
Ravens, DT Travis Jones Agree To Extension
DECEMBER 12: Jones secured a signing bonus worth just over $9MM, as detailed by Over the Cap. His guarantee figure includes his $1.22MM base salary for next season and a $6.5MM option bonus. Jones’ cap hit will spike to $16.35MM in 2027 and remain the same the following year. A $1MM roster bonus is due on the fifth day of the league year in 2028.
DECEMBER 11: Travis Jones loomed as one of the Ravens’ top pending free agents for 2026. The fourth-year defensive tackle will not be reaching the open market, however. 
Jones and the Ravens have agreed to a three-year extension, Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic reports. As a result, Jones will be under contract through the 2028 campaign. This news – which is now official, per a team announcement – means one of the league’s top pending free agents at the position will not become available in March.
The Jones pact is worth $40.5MM, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. That works out to an average annual value of $13.5MM, a sharp increase in the former third-rounder’s compensation compared to his rookie contract. Given the nature of the DT market, however, this deal will be viewed as a team-friendly one provided Jones can maintain his current level of play against the run. Jones will receive $25MM in guarantees, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network adds.
A rotational presence during his first two seasons in the NFL, Jones became a starter in 2023. The 26-year-old set a new career high with 42 tackles last year, a figure he has a strong chance of surpassing this campaign. Jones has only posted five sacks and 21 quarterback pressures to date in his career, and as such expectations will remain low regarding his future production against the pass. Still, his run-stopping presence will be welcomed in Baltimore for years to come.
The context leading up to this agreement helps explain its timing. As Zrebiec notes, a CBA issue meant Jones had actually been on track for restricted free agency this spring with one of his previous seasons not accruing for contract purposes. A grievance was filed on his behalf by the NFLPA, with a hearing scheduled for today. The outcome of that process would have determined Jones’ future regarding his free agent status. Being an RFA would have likely set him up for a second-round tender only covering the 2026 season.
Instead, that has now become a moot point. Negotiations between the Ravens and Jones’ agent prior to the hearing finalized this agreement, one which will ensure stability along the defensive interior for the foreseeable future. This extension comes amidst questions regarding fellow defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike‘s status. The All-Pro landed on IR in September due to a neck injury, and it was learned shortly thereafter that he would not return this season. Madubuike is on the books through 2027 on a pact averaging $24.5MM per season, so his recovery outlook will be critical moving forward.
In any case, Jones’ future is no longer in doubt. The UConn product was one of several pending free agents whom the Ravens viewed as high priorities for new deals. Another was tight end Mark Andrews, and team and player recently worked out a three-year deal in that case as well. As the 6-7 Ravens continue to push for top spot in the AFC North, it will be interesting to see if other agreements such as this one wind up being finalized prior to free agency.
Ravens Activate S Ar’Darius Washington, OLB Tavius Robinson to 53-Man Roster
The Ravens are getting some defensive reinforcements for the closing stretch of the regular season. Baltimore is activating veteran safety Ar’Darius Washington from the reserve/physically unable to perform list and third-year pass rusher Tavius Robinson from injured reserve. Both players held starting roles before being placed on their respective injured lists. 
It was seven months ago, to the day, that Washington suffered an Achilles tear that was expected to hold him out for the entirety of the 2025 NFL season. A former undrafted free agent out of TCU, Washington started out as a strong special teamer and a role player on defense. When Baltimore’s defense was struggling throughout defensive coordinator Zach Orr‘s first season, the team jettisoned veterans Marcus Williams and Eddie Jackson and placed Washington as a starter next to star Kyle Hamilton.
With Washington and Hamilton manning the defensive outfield, the Ravens defense rebounded, becoming one of the league’s strongest in the back half of the season. Shortly after suffering the offseason injury, Washington made a late-season return the target of his recovery. By arriving with four weeks left in the regular season, he’s more than met that goal. In Washington’s shorter-than-expected absence, the Ravens have become accustomed to fielding a three-safety defense. At any one time, the team will usually have rookie first-rounder Malaki Starks and trade acquisition Alohi Gilman in the secondary as the versatile, All-Pro Hamilton roams to places of greatest need.
With so many assets in the secondary, the Ravens may slow-play Washington’s return to the field. Alternatively, they may attempt to utilize him in a similar role to Hamilton. In the past, they’ve moved Washington back and forth between nickel and safety, so he holds a versatility of his own that the team could easily utilize out of their talent-rich safeties room.
Robinson has missed the last eight weeks after suffering a broken foot. Logging two sacks in his first six games of the season, Robinson led the team in that statistic before landing on IR. The Ravens have attempted to make improvements to their pass rush this season, giving Robinson a starting job across from Kyle Van Noy, drafting Mike Green in the second round, and making two trades that saw Odafe Oweh sent to Los Angeles (in exchange for Gilman) and Dre’Mont Jones arrive in Baltimore.
It hasn’t amounted to much, considering the Ravens currently rank 30th in the league with only 19 sacks this season. They’ll hope that adding Robinson back to the fold will help in that regard. The Ravens have been working with 51 players on their active roster since placing running back Justice Hill and defensive tackle Taven Bryan on IR in late-November, so no corresponding moves were needed to activate Washington and Robinson.
CB Desmond King Retires
Desmond King‘s NFL career has come to an end. The veteran cornerback and return specialist took to X to announce his retirement. 
King has not played in 2025, and his retirement announcement confirms he will not look to make a late-season return to the league. Nearing his 31st birthday, he will instead turn his attention to his post-playing days. King saw time with five different franchises over the course of his eight-year career.
A Chargers fifth-round pick in 2017, his NFL tenure began in Los Angeles and remained there until a November 2020 trade. King was dealt from the Chargers to the Titans, the team with which he finished playing out his rookie contract. During his first trip to free agency, a one-year Texans pact was worked out. King operated as a defensive starter during his debut Houston campaign, and he did so again the following year upon re-upping with the team.
After being released shortly before the start of the 2023 season, King had a brief spell with the Steelers. That was followed by a return to Houston which covered the remainder of the campaign. In 2024, similarly, King was cut after training camp before making one appearance with the Texans. His final NFL games took place as a member of the Ravens while serving as the team’s punt returner. Third phase success was a key factor early in King’s career; the Iowa product earned first-team All-Pro acclaim in 2018 for his work as a returner.
In all, King made a combined total of 113 regular and postseason appearances during his time in the NFL. He departs the game with $14MM in career earnings.
Updated 2026 NFL Draft Order
Week 14’s action brought about a few notable updates to the standings at both ends of the NFL’s conferences. Another four teams are officially out of playoff contention, while wins by Tennessee and New Orleans could prove to be rather important once the campaign has ended.
The Jets, Browns, Falcons and Commanders were eliminated from the postseason through the results of recent days. Of course, each of those teams have been out of the running for a playoff push for some time now. Still, that group will be worth watching closely over the closing four weeks of the season as the top-10 order for Day 1 of the draft gradually comes into focus.
Uncertainty regarding the quarterback class of 2026 will no doubt remain a talking point over the coming months. Fernando Mendoza strengthened his case to be QB1 in April’s draft, although it remains to be seen if other top signal-callers like Dante Moore and Ty Simpson will turn pro or elect to remain in school for one more season. Decisions on those fronts will be central storylines carrying significant implications for the teams near the top of the order which find themselves in need of a quarterback investment.
For non-playoff teams, the draft order is determined by the inverted 2025 standings plus a series of tiebreakers, starting with strength of schedule. Playoff squads are slotted by their postseason outcome and the reverse order of their regular season record.
Here is an updated look at the first-round order:
- New York Giants (2-11)
- Las Vegas Raiders (2-11)
- Tennessee Titans (2-11)
- Cleveland Browns (3-10)
- New Orleans Saints (3-10)
- Washington Commanders (3-10)
- New York Jets (3-10)
- Arizona Cardinals (3-10)
- Los Angeles Rams (via Falcons)
- Cincinnati Bengals (4-9)
- Minnesota Vikings (5-8)
- Miami Dolphins (6-7)
- Baltimore Ravens (6-7)
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-7)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-6-1)
- Carolina Panthers (7-6)
- Detroit Lions (8-5)
- New York Jets (via Colts)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-6)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6)
- Philadelphia Eagles (8-5)
- Houston Texans (8-5)
- Chicago Bears (9-4)
- Buffalo Bills (9-4)
- Los Angeles Chargers (9-4)
- San Francisco 49ers (9-4)
- Cleveland Browns (via Jaguars)
- Dallas Cowboys (via Packers)
- Seattle Seahawks (10-3)
- New England Patriots (11-2)
- Los Angeles Rams (10-3)
- Denver Broncos (11-2)
Ravens Sign Laken Tomlinson To Practice Squad, Release Carl Lawson
One week after the Texans waived him, guard Laken Tomlinson has found a new home. The Ravens signed Tomlinson to their practice squad on Wednesday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports. They released defensive end Carl Lawson from their taxi squad to make room for Tomlinson.
Now 33 years old, Tomlinson entered the NFL as the Lions’ first-round pick (28th overall) in 2015. He has since started in a combined 162 of 173 appearances with the Lions, 49ers, Jets, Seahawks, and Texans. Known for his durability, Tomlinson has logged a full schedule in nine of his 11 seasons.
Having appeared in 10 contests this year, Tomlinson won’t put together his fifth straight 17-game slate. He started in seven games with the Texans before they bumped him from the lineup and later cut him. Tomlinson is Pro Football Focus’ 52nd-ranked guard among 80 qualifiers.
The addition of Tomlinson comes a day after the Ravens lost guard Ben Cleveland to a three-game suspension for a violation of the NFL’s Substances of Abuse policy. Cleveland has come off the bench in 10 games this season. Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele have served as full-time starters. With Cleveland unavailable for the next few weeks, Tomlinson will join Emery Jones in giving the Ravens another depth option at guard.
Lawson appeared in 15 games and picked up five sacks with the Cowboys last season, but his impact in Baltimore was minimal. He played in one game with the Ravens – a Week 13 loss to Cincinnati, one of his ex-teams – before they cut him. Lawson totaled 26 defensive snaps and made one tackle in that contest.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/8/25
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Claimed off waivers (from Bears): LB Carl Jones Jr.
- Suspended: G Ben Cleveland
Houston Texans
- Claimed off waivers (from Jaguars): RB Cody Schrader
- Waived: FB Jakob Johnson
Philadelphia Eagles
- Elevated: S Andre’ Sam
San Francisco 49ers
- Claimed off waivers (from Broncos): LB Garret Wallow
- Placed on IR: G Ben Bartch (story)
- Practice window opened: QB Kurtis Rourke
The Ravens announced today that offensive lineman Ben Cleveland was slapped with a three-game suspension for violating the NFL’s Substances of Abuse Policy. While it’s uncertain if it’s related, Cleveland was arrested this past offseason on DUI chargers (per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic). The veteran has appeared in 10 games this season, with the majority of his reps coming on special teams.
The 49ers got some good news today, as seventh-round QB Kurtis Rourke had his practice window opened. The Indiana product continues to recover from offseason surgery on his torn ACL. While the 49ers realistically have 21 days to activate the quarterback to their active roster, Cam Inman of the Bay Area News Group says the rookie is still expected to be redshirted for the 2025 campaign.
Ravens Received Trade Interest In RB Keaton Mitchell
Keaton Mitchell has flashed potential when on the field, something which has caught the eye of interested teams. The third-year running back was the subject of trade calls ahead of last month’s deadline. 
Teams reached out to the Ravens to discuss a Mitchell trade, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reports. To little surprise, he adds Baltimore (a team which was involved in three in-season swaps) turned down interest on that front. Instead of changing teams at the deadline, Mitchell remained in place for the closing stages of the 2025 season.
After entering the league as a UDFA, Mitchell was unused for the beginning of his rookie season. Things changed when he found himself in the lineup, though, as he totaled 489 scrimmage yards on just 56 touches while scoring a pair of touchdowns. An ACL tear ended his standout showing in 2023, and the 23-year-old only made five appearances last year upon returning to game action.
As expected, Derrick Henry – who signed an extension this past offseason – has continued to lead the way in Baltimore’s backfield in 2025. The future Hall of Famer has received at least 10 carries all but once this season, and a heavy workload will no doubt continue down the stretch. Henry has endured rough patches multiple times in 2025, and especially with Justice Hill residing on IR due to a neck injury, Mitchell is in position to operate as Baltimore’s change-of-pace option at the RB spot.
Mitchell scored a touchdown during the Ravens’ Thanksgiving loss, and his performance yesterday included a 55-yard run. The East Carolina product has only handled 93 carries to date in his brief NFL career, but he has averaged 7.0 yards per attempt. Maintaining that level of efficiency over time will obviously be difficult, but Mitchell will look to remain an effective contributor through the remainder of his Baltimore tenure.
Henry and Hill are both under contract for next season. Mitchell, by contrast, is a pending restricted free agent. Given the fact teams were interested in exploring a trade, suitors could emerge in short order provided he is non-tendered and reaches the open market. A more likely scenario would be a decision on the Ravens’ part to tender Mitchell; that would leave an unmatched offer sheet (or trade, of course) as the only means by which a change of scenery could be possible in this case.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/6/25
Here are the minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations for the Week 14 Sunday slate:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed from practice squad: LB Channing Tindall
- Elevated: WR Jalen Brooks, WR Trent Sherfield
- Placed on IR: WR Greg Dortch
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed from practice squad: WR Deven Thompkins
- Elevated: CB C.J. Henderson
- Placed on IR: S DeMarcco Hellams
Baltimore Ravens
- Elevated: S Sanoussi Kane, DT Josh Tupou
Buffalo Bills
- Elevated: DE Morgan Fox, LB Baylon Spector
Chicago Bears
- Signed from practice squad: OL Jordan McFadden
- Elevated: LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin
- Waived: LB Carl Jones Jr.
Cleveland Browns
- Elevated: DE K.J. Henry
Denver Broncos
- Signed from practice squad: TE Marcedes Lewis
- Elevated: LB Jordan Turner
- Waived: LB Garret Wallow
Houston Texans
- Elevated: CB Alijah Huzzie, DT Haggai Ndubuisi
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed from practice squad: S Mike Edwards
- Elevated: G C.J. Hanson
- Placed on IR: S Christian Roland-Wallace
Las Vegas Raiders
- Elevated: WR Shedrick Jackson, WR DJ Turner
Miami Dolphins
- Elevated: OL Kion Smith
Minnesota Vikings
- Signed from practice squad: QB John Wolford
- Elevated: CB Dwight McGlothern Jr., DT Taki Taimani
New Orleans Saints
- Elevated: WR Kevin Austin, K Charlie Smyth
New York Jets
- Signed from practice squad: QB Brady Cook, CB Jordan Clark
- Elevated: CB Tre Brown, CB Nik Needham
- Placed on IR: CB Jarvis Brownlee, LB Marcelino McCrary-Ball
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Elevated: T Dylan Cook, WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling
Seattle Seahawks
- Elevated: RB Velus Jones
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Elevated: S Marcus Banks
Washington Commanders
- Elevated: DE DeMarcus Walker
Dort becomes Arizona’s 26th placement on injures reserve this year. The Cardinals’ receiving corps has been stretched thin with Marvin Harrison Jr. out with a heel injury and Zay Jones on injured reserve with an injured Achilles tendon.
Earning more and more responsibility over the course of his sophomore campaign, former undrafted free agent Roland-Wallace will unfortunately head to IR after starting in the Chiefs’ two most recent contests. As a roaming safety, he’s been functioning lately as a nickelback alongside the versatile pair of starting safeties behind him.
With Bosa set to miss this weekend’s game with a hamstring injury, Fox has been called up from the practice squad in Buffalo to help bolster a thin group of defensive ends.
Smyth gets the call again this week as the primary placekicker in New Orleans. He’ll be kicking in his second straight game following the team’s dismissal of Blake Grupe.
For Spector in Buffalo, this will be his third elevation this season, meaning the Bills will need to sign him to the active roster in order for him to appear in another game in 2025. The same is true of Turner in Denver, Hanson in Kansas City, and Banks in Tampa Bay. On the other side of that, Tindall in Arizona, Lewis in Jacksonville, and Cook in New York were all signed to 53-man rosters today after they used up their three allotted practice squad elevations.
Ravens Still Pursuing Extension Agreements
Earlier this week, the Ravens ended speculation about Mark Andrews‘ future by working out an extension. Further contract work could be finalized relatively soon. 
When speaking to the media on Friday, head coach John Harbaugh said (via Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic) the team is attempting to sign more players to extensions. No specific names have emerged on that front, but any number of candidates exist for a new deal in Baltimore. The tight end position in particular will be one to watch.
Andrews was a pending free agent prior to his new deal being signed. The same is also true of Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar. Both 2022 draftees are playing out the final year of their rookie contracts, but it remains to be seen what their value would be on new pacts. Likely flashed potential last season in particular, but he has not managed to emerge as a consistent producer when healthy in 2025. Kolar primarily offers special teams value, although his 40% offensive snap share for this season represents a career high.
Keeping Andrews on the books while also authorizing a notable raise for Likely and/or Kolar would be challenging given Baltimore’s cap outlook. Other notable players on expiring deals include center Tyler Linderbaum and defensive tackle Travis Jones. Linderbaum’s fifth-year option was understandably declined, but he and the Ravens are not believed to be close to an extension agreement. Jones, meanwhile, has played his way into a major raise on his second contract, whether it comes from Baltimore or another team.
Veterans such as edge rusher Kyle Van Noy, wideout DeAndre Hopkins and safety Alohi Gilman are also on expiring deals. One or more members of that trio could be seen as a priority for a new pact, especially if some of the team’s younger contributors sign for the long term. At the moment, Baltimore is projected to have roughly $47MM in cap space for 2026.
Of course, this comes against the backdrop of a Lamar Jackson extension being widely expected. Talks on a deal to lower the two-time MVP’s cap charge for next year (currently set at $74.5MM) have taken place, and finalizing a new pact would provide clarity on the team’s financial outlook moving forward. That, in turn, could allow for other deals to be budgeted for prior to the start of the new league year in March. As the Ravens continue to vie for top spot in the AFC North down the stretch, it will be interesting to see if they can take of more financial business as well.