Daryl Worley

Ravens Rumors: RBs, Samac, Safety

So much of the Ravens’ roster is set at the top of the depth chart; even the starting guard spots are starting to come into focus. Still, with the regular season fast approaching, Baltimore is going to need to make some decisions down the stretch.

At running back, the team has an obvious 1-2 punch in Derrick Henry and Justice Hill while they wait for Keaton Mitchell to return from injury. While Mitchell remains on the injured list, though, that leaves the opportunity to fill one more spot on the roster with a running back, though ESPN’s Jamison Hensley acknowledges that they could run with just two until Mitchell returns.

Owen Wright has seemingly been the name to watch for that spot. An undrafted free agent addition out of Monmouth last year, Wright was pushing for a roster spot in the team’s final preseason game today before suffering a hairline fracture in his foot in the contest, per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, complicating his roster status. While not season-ending, the injury will likely require a stay on an injured list if the Ravens want to keep him on the roster.

This opens the door for fifth-round rookie Rasheen Ali out of Marshall. The Ravens don’t like to get in the habit of waiving rookie draft picks, but after Stanford cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly was failed to make the 53-man roster last year, it seems nobody is safe. Ali hasn’t gotten much use this preseason and failed to appear in today’s preseason game, so it was not looking great for him to make the roster, but Wright’s injury may allow him to do just that.

Here are some breakdowns of other roster battles in Baltimore:

  • Another player who suffered an injury in today’s contest was backup center Nick Samac. The seventh-round rookie out of Michigan State was making a push for the 53-man roster, culminating in a start at center this preseason. While fans saw him carted off the field today, both Hensley and Zrebiec see him making the final cut.
  • At safety, the Ravens have an interesting decision ahead of them. The Ravens have boasted an outstanding record over the years of seeing an undrafted rookie make the 53-man roster, and this year, there doesn’t seem to be an obvious choice. Beau Brade, an undrafted signee out of Maryland, has been a popular option, but there is no guarantee. The team already rosters Kyle Hamilton, Marcus Williams, and Eddie Jackson, as well as rookie seventh-round pick Sanoussi Kane out of Purdue. They also roster Ar’Darius Washington, who may split his time between nickelback and safety. Additionally, the team re-signed veteran Daryl Worley who has played quite a bit on the Ravens defense in the past three years. If Baltimore decides to hold on to five safeties (not including Washington), the decision may come down to the potential of Brade versus the experience of Worley.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/22/24

Today’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

  • Waived-injured: WR Jared Wayne

Kansas City Chiefs

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

  • Signed: WR Kevin Austin Jr.

New York Jets

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/5/24

Here are Friday’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

New Orleans Saints

New York Jets

  • Signed from practice squad: RB Xazavian Valladay

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

A knee injury will send Fuller to IR, potentially wrapping the veteran cornerback’s second stint in Washington. The 2016 third-round pick, sent to Kansas City in the Alex Smith trade, returned in 2020 on a four-year, $40MM deal. With the Commanders having already fired Jack Del Rio and being set to clean house following their season finale, the 28-year-old corner could be headed elsewhere in free agency.

Worley has played 124 defensive snaps for the Ravens this season, starting two games. This will be the eighth-year corner’s second IR placement this season. If the Ravens qualify for Super Bowl LVIII, they would be eligible to activate Worley a second time. (Baltimore has four IR activations remaining, though one may need to be saved in case Mark Andrews can come back.) Worley is dealing with shoulder and ankle injuries.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/4/23

Today’s minor moves and gameday callups for Week 9:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

  • Elevated: QB Dresser Winn

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

With Kyler Murray not being activated from injured reserve this week, the Cardinals are heading into Week 9 with Clayton Tune as the only quarterback on their active roster. Driskel will be called up for the week as a standard gameday elevation to back up Tune.

With Matthew Stafford listed as questionable for tomorrow’s game, the Rams are adding some depth at the quarterback position. Dresser Winn had a breakout 2022 campaign at UT Martin, tossing 18 touchdowns while adding another three scores on the ground. He joined the Rams as an UDFA but was cut at the end of the preseason. He had a brief stint in the Canadian Football League before rejoining the Rams practice squad earlier this week. If Stafford can’t go, Brett Rypien will get the call under center for the Rams.

Peters will be elevated for the second straight week in Seattle. The 41-year-old, playing in his 19th NFL season, split snaps with right tackle Stone Forsythe last week against Cleveland.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/1/23

Today’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

New York Jets

  • Signed to active roster: OL Chris Glaser

With the Chiefs adding Mecole Hardman and eyeing a WR crunch, the team reportedly shopped James last week. A trade didn’t end up happening, and with the wideout sitting on IR, the team has decided to designate him for return. After resurfacing last year with the Giants, James signed a one-year deal worth $1.23MM with the Chiefs back in April. He got into Kansas City’s first two games, hauling in one six-yard catch.

Minor NFL Transactions: 10/7/23

Here are the day’s minor transactions heading into Week 5:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

  • Elevated: WR Xavier Malone

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Ravens Sign DB Daryl Worley To Active Roster, S Duron Harmon To Practice Squad

With Marcus Williams suffering a pectoral injury during the Ravens’ season opener, the team has added some reinforcement to their secondary. The Ravens announced that they signed defensive back Daryl Worley to the active roster and safety Duron Harmon to the practice squad.

Worley has been with the Ravens since the end of the 2021 campaign. After getting into eight games with Baltimore in 2022, the veteran re-signed with the organization this offseason. He was cut prior to roster deadline day but quickly caught on with Baltimore’s practice squad. Worley was promoted to the active roster for Sunday’s season opener.

The former third-round pick has seen time in 79 games (55 starts). He started 15 games with the Raiders as recently as 2019. His ability to play both cornerback and safety made him a natural choice for the 53-man roster.

Harmon won three Super Bowls during his seven-year stint with the Patriots. He’s bounced around a bit since leaving New England, spending time with the Lions, Falcons, and Raiders over the past three seasons. He served as a full-time starter at each of those stops, including a 2022 campaign where he started 16 games for the Raiders.

He finished last season with a career-high 86 tackles to go along with five passes defended and two interceptions. Pro Football Focus graded him as an above-average safety (especially in coverage), but the veteran remained unsigned up to this point.

Williams is set to be out for “a while,” according to John Harbaugh (via Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic). The coach also said that the safety could go under the knife, although that route is still to be determined by team doctors.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/9/23

We have our first flood of pregame transactions of the season today as teams across the league with games tomorrow utilize their two permitted practice squad elevations:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Promoted from practice squad: LB Brevin Allen

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

  • Promoted from practice squad: RB Myles Gaskin, OLB Benton Whitley

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC North

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These BengalsBrownsRavens and Steelers moves are noted below.

Cincinnati Bengals

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Baltimore Ravens

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Cleveland Browns

Claimed:

Placed on IR:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Pittsburgh Steelers

Released:

Claimed:

Waived:

Signed to practice squad:

Ravens Set 53-Man Roster

The Ravens did a bit of work in the days leading up to the roster cut deadline, including the announced release of veteran running back Melvin Gordon. Still, there was a bit of work left to be done today. Here’s the remaining moves Baltimore made in order to get down to 53 players:

Waived:

Released:

The most surprising moves here come at cornerback. Especially with the recent injury trouble facing star corner Marlon Humphrey, the Ravens choice to not only cut two reliable backups in Seymour and Worley but also to waive the fifth-round rookie draft pick Kelly is shocking. The team did reinforce with several free agent veterans like Rock Ya-Sin, Ronald Darby, and Arthur Maulet, and they’re hoping to see strong seasons from second year cornerbacks Damarion Williams and Jalyn Armour-Davis, both of whom were limited in their rookie seasons due to injury. Look for them to attempt to retain Seymour and Worley on the practice squad. Kelly will have to clear waivers in order to return, a tough ask for a fifth-round talent. Williams is expected to be placed on injured reserve following the deadline, opening a door for Worley or Seymour to return to the active roster.

Brown and Johnson put forth valiant efforts throughout the preseason, essentially allowing starting quarterback Lamar Jackson and primary backup Tyler Huntley to escape the preseason without really being touched. Unfortunately, neither made a strong enough case to remain on the regular season roster. Brown is surely a candidate to return to the practice squad, if he clears waivers.

Baltimore’s tradition of scouting undrafted talent continued this year as the team saw two free agent rookies make the initial 53-man roster. Former East Carolina running back Keaton Mitchell gave some strong impressions that helped him beat out Gordon and fellow undrafted signee Wright. Malik Hamm, Lafayette’s all-time sack leader, makes the team behind as of yet unproven pass rushers Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo, veteran Jadeveon Clowney, and fellow rookie Tavius Robinson, a fourth-round pick out of Ole Miss.

Outside linebacker Tyus Bowser remains on the non-football injury list to start the season alongside long snapper Nick Moore, rookie guard Andrew Vorhees, and cornerback Trayvon Mullen. He’ll miss at least the first four games of the season.