Injuries for both teams will be a key part of the storyline for Sunday's pivotal matchup between the Ravens and Dolphins.
Ravens starting safety Kyle Hamilton (knee), starting cornerback Brandon Stephens (ankle), and starting right guard Kevin Zeitler (knee/quad) are all inactive for the first time this season.
On the positive side, wide receiver Zay Flowers (calf) is active after being listed as questionable.
The Dolphins will be missing two key offensive weapons, with wide receiver Jaylen Waddle (ankle) and running back Raheem Mostert (knee/ankle) both inactive. Waddle (72 catches, 1,014 yards four touchdowns) has been a 1,000-yard receiver in all three of his NFL seasons, while Mostert leads the NFL with 18 rushing touchdowns.
Starting right guard Robert Hunt (hamstring) is also inactive for Miami, which faces a Baltimore team that leads the league in sacks. All five Dolphins offensive linemen were on the injury report this week.
The Dolphins will have safety Jevon Holland back on the field, however. He had been sidelined for the past month due to knee injuries.
Even without Waddle and Mostert in the lineup, the Ravens' defense will face a serious challenge without Hamilton and Stephens.
Miami has the NFL's top-ranked offense featuring Tyreek Hill, the league's most explosive receiver (106 catches, 1,604 yards, 12 touchdowns), and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is one of the league's most accurate passers.
Hamilton is a key to the Ravens' defense and was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after his two interceptions in Monday's victory over the 49ers. The versatile safety has played at an All-Pro level this season, impacting games in a variety of ways, playing the slot and deep middle while causing havoc close to the line of scrimmage as a blitzer and run defender. Baltimore's pass defense has a 75.7 passer rating allowed with Hamilton on the field and 96.1 without him since the start of last year, per Next Gen Stats.Â
Geno Stone, who leads the team in interceptions, will likely return to playing a prominent role in the secondary. Cornerbacks Ronald Darby, Daryl Worley and Rock Ya-Sin are available to play corner opposite Pro Bowl cornerback Marlon Humphrey.
Zeitler has been one of the team's most consistent offensive linemen and has only missed two games since joining the Ravens in 2021. Zeitler worked out prior to the game in front of the team's medical staff. Ben Cleveland is the likely replacement for Zeitler in the starting lineup, with the Ravens using a left tackle (Ronnie Stanley/Patrick Mekari) and right tackle (Morgan Moses/Daniel Faalele) in recent games.
Flowers leads the Ravens in both catches (74) and receiving yards (752), having an outstanding rookie season as one of Lamar Jackson's main targets. Flowers was on the field testing his calf prior to the game and was given the green light to play.
Wide receiver Laquon Treadwell was signed to Baltimore's 53-man roster from practice squad and is active, and defensive back Andrew Adams and outside linebacker Jeremiah Moon were elevated from the practice squad.
Other inactives for Baltimore are cornerback Pepe Williams, quarterback Malik Cunningham and guard Sala Aumavae-Laulu. Josh Johnson is designated as the No. 3 quarterback Tyler Huntley active to backup Jackson.
Inactive for the Dolphins are quarterback Skylar Thompson, tight end Tyler Kroft and defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah.
