Terrell Suggs Has Torn Biceps, But Wants To Keep Playing
It's happening again.
Just like last season, injuries are beginning to pile up* *to key starters that have a major impact on games.
The latest is Terrell Suggs, who left Sunday's game with what is being reported as a biceps tear, according to Fox Sports' Jay Glazer.
A glimmer of hope comes from ESPN's Adam Schefter, who reported the injury is not season-ending and Suggs wants to play through it. Suggs also suffered a biceps tear in 2012 and played through it on the way to the Ravens' Super Bowl XLVII win.
Suggs alluded to doing just that Sunday night in the post-game locker room.
"We don't know," Suggs said. "I ain't no doctor. We're going to get it looked at, but you know who I am and what I represent."
The 34-year-old outside linebacker appeared to injure his arm while sacking quarterback Eli Manning in the fourth quarter, as can be seen in the video to the right. Immediately after the takedown, Suggs grabbed his arm and rushed to the sideline. Medical staff wrapped his arm, but he never returned.
Suggs' injury only compounds the problems with the outside pass rush, which has struggled to put pressure on quarterbacks. Elvis Dumervil, 32, sat out Sunday's game with a foot injury after missing the first three with the same issue. It's unclear when he's going to return to the lineup.
Even after coming off an Achilles tear and still getting back to his normal self, Suggs leads the team with five sacks, which is also good enough for the sixth-best mark among all NFL players.
"[I]f Suggs required surgery, it could potentially end his season," wrote CSNMidAtlantic.com's Clifton Brown. "Even if Suggs avoided surgery, how effective would he be playing with a torn biceps in his 14th season?
"Suggs' uncertain status, only adds to the problems the Ravens (3-3) face riding a three-game losing streak. An already injury-depleted team may face the prospect of having Suggs not at 100 percent, or at worst, not at all."
Biggest Play Of The Game: When Jimmy Smith Sustained Concussion
Here's a stat that pretty much sums up the game …
Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.'s first half with cornerback Jimmy Smith healthy: two catches, 11 yards, zero touchdowns, one fumble.
Beckham's second half with Smith out: six catches, 211 yards and two touchdowns.
"The biggest play of the game was the one in which [Smith] sustained a concussion," wrote The Baltimore Sun's Jeff Zrebiec. "That's not to say Smith would have shut the electric Beckham down. But he would have fared far better than Shareece Wright, Will Davis and Tavon Young."
After the game, Young took blame for Beckham's 66-yard touchdown reception on fourth-and-1 in the fourth quarter that ultimately held for the Giants' victory. The rookie tried to jam Beckham at the line, but the receiver got inside position and Young collided with safety Eric Weddle, sending both players to the ground. Beckham was off to the races and outran the rest of the Ravens secondary to the end zone.
"I'll take the blame for it," Young told reporters after the game. "I've got to make the play, make more plays."
Young was also beaten on Roger Lewis Jr.'s 24-yard touchdown catch late in the second quarter, says The Sun, but he also had a monster diving interception – his second of the season – that led to a field goal.
"After Jimmy Smith went out, the Ravens simply couldn’t handle [Beckham]," said Brown. "Making a catch on a slant is one thing, taking it to the house in that situation, if you're the Ravens, you cannot allow that. It showed you how vulnerable their secondary can still be without Jimmy Smith.
"That's one thing that I was concerned about coming into the season. Even though they brought in Weddle and switched [Lardarius] Webb to safety, if anything happened to Jimmy Smith, it could be a problem. That showed up in a big way against Odell Beckham."
AFC North Race Shaping Up To Be One Of Attrition
Had the Ravens been able to pull out a victory in New York, they would be tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers atop of the division. That didn't happen, but the AFC North race is still wide open after all four teams suffered losses Sunday.
AFC North StandingsPittsburgh Steelers: 4-2
Baltimore Ravens: 3-3
Cincinnati Bengals: 2-4
Cleveland Browns: 0-6
"Remember when the AFC North was good?" wrote The MMQB's Peter King.
"Its denizens went 0-4 on Sunday, and powers Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cincinnati are 9-9. Baltimore's lost three straight, Cincinnati two and Pittsburgh one. In the last 52 weeks, the Browns are 1-16."
The Ravens will have to overcome a mountain of injuries to stay competitive in the division, but the Steelers also suffered a big blow yesterday when quarterback Ben Roethlisberger left the game against the Miami Dolphins with a torn meniscus.
"As many of you are reading this, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is having arthroscopic surgery on a partially torn meniscus in his left knee," wrote King.
The surgery will not end Roethlisberger's season, but the Steelers will reportedly face the conference-leading New England Patriots next week without their starting quarterback, and it's unclear if he'll return after the Week 8 bye in time for the Ravens game on Nov. 6.
"AFC North race is shaping up to be one of attrition," tweeted ESPN's Jamison Hensley.
In addition to losing Suggs and Smith yesterday, the Ravens were already missing five Pro Bowlers: wide receiver Steve Smith Sr., guard Marshal Yanda, linebacker C.J. Mosley, returner Devin Hester and Dumervil. Plus, they were missing left tackle and first-round pick Ronnie Stanley.
"This season is slipping away in a hurry, and for the second year in a row, the Ravens might be too wounded to do much about it," wrote The Sun's Childs Walker.
Ravens Are Own Worst Enemy With Penalties
Baltimore was in position to overcome its mounting injuries, but adding in the self-inflicted mistakes was too much.
"Ravens continue to be their own worst enemy with penalty after penalty," tweeted Hensley.
"The weekly penalties are ridiculous," added Zrebiec.
Baltimore committed a season-high 15 penalties for 111 yards. About half of the offensive penalties came from the patched-up offensive line that had three starters missing from the game. The penalties continually set the offense back in drives.
"Penalties are killing the Ravens," wrote Brown. "[They] can't stay out of their own way, and often break momentum with penalties that they are not good enough to overcome. Until that changes, it will be hard to win consistently."
Zrebiec: John Harbaugh Made Same Fourth-Down Call All 32 NFL Coaches Would Make
Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh continued his aggressive play-calling Sunday when he went for it on fourth-and-1 when his team was down by four in the fourth quarter.
The team wasn't able to convert on a run out to the left, which predictably led to second-guessing. Zrebiec says it's a call all other NFL coaches would have made considering the context of the game.
Marty Mornhinweg Didn't Fix Everything
The offense showed improvement after the team switched offensive coordinators from Marc Trestman to Marty Mornhinweg.
Most notably, quarterback Joe Flacco threw more passes downfield, completing four of at least 20 yards, compared to 11 in the first five games combined. The unit also picked up big chunks of yardage on incompletions due to pass interference calls.
Mornhinweg also showed a greater commitment to the run game, as running back Terrance West rushed 23 times for 87 yards and two scores.
However, the unit still committed too many penalties and struggled in the red zone.
"Marty Mornhinweg's debut as offensive coordinator did not fix everything," wrote Brown. "The Ravens were more aggressive, and they completed deep passes to Mike Wallace and Breshad Perriman, but they still struggled to convert in the red zone. They were stopped on a key fourth-quarter drive and came away with no points, when Terrance West was stopped well short on a sweep on fourth and goal from the one.
"The Ravens offense still needs plenty of work."
Quick Hits
- Is Flacco rushing into bad throws because he's thinking too much about pressure? [CSNMidAtlantic.com]
