In a season where the Ravens have about a third of a full roster sitting on injured reserve, the team still has several lingering injury questions going into this week's matchup with the Seattle Seahawks.
The Ravens have uncertainty at quarterback, tight end and left tackle, and Head Coach John Harbaugh provided updates on all of those positions during his press conference Monday afternoon.
Here's a breakdown for each player:
LT Eugene Monroe
The starting left tackle has been inactive the last two games because of a shoulder injury that he suffered against the Rams. The shoulder has been a nagging problem for Monroe, who has missed six games this year.
James Hurst has started in Monroe's place and actually played the bulk of the reps this season. Monroe hasn't practiced the last two weeks, and he will undergo more tests this week to determine whether he can return this year or be placed on season-ending injured reserve.
"It's just unfortunate for Eugene," Harbaugh said. "He has the shoulder issues that have been really nagging him. I think he's up for another MRI on Wednesday. Between him, his doctor and his agent, he'll just have to make a decision about whether or not he wants to play with it for the rest of the year."
TE Maxx Williams
Rookie tight end Maxx Williams was inactive last week because of a concussion he suffered the previous week against Cleveland. Williams has not practiced since suffering the injury.
He has to be cleared to play as part of the NFL's concussion protocol before returning to the field, but the rookie has expressed optimism to Harbaugh about playing this week.
"Maxx tells me he's playing," Harbaugh said. "He's going through the concussion protocol, so that's always going to be something that's hard to determine, but he's a guy that I'm pretty certain is going to play. We'll see how it goes."
The Ravens need Williams on the field as much as possible because they are incredibly short-handed at tight end after fellow rookie Nick Boyle was suspended on Monday for the rest of the year for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
TE Crockett Gillmore
The injury concerns at tight end are amplified after Gillmore left Sunday's game with a back injury. He took a big hit to the back in the first quarter and tried to play through it, but he ultimately had to come out of the game.
The Ravens hope Gilllmore won't miss the matchup with Seattle.
"Crockett has had a myriad of nicks and bruises and contusions and all those kinds of things like that. This is another one," Harbaugh said. "It'll just be day-to-day. He will not have to practice to play for sure. With our situation at tight end, if he can play, he's going to be out there playing. That's just the kind of guy he is. We'll just have to play it day by day and then we'll see."
QB Matt Schaub
The starting quarterback took his share of hits against the Dolphins. He stayed in the game despite shots to the knee, shoulder and head. He also underwent the NFL's concussion protocol during and after the game to make sure he didn't suffer a head injury. He passed all of the concussion tests.
Harbaugh indicated that the 34-year-old quarterback could still miss some practice time during the week to allow him to recover from all the hits he took Sunday.
"It gives a chance to get Jimmy the reps in there, which will help him too," Harbaugh said about Schaub missing practice time. "I don't think Matt needs the reps to play in the game. It's going to be the same offense that we're going to run."
The expectation is for Schaub to make his third-straight start since taking over the starting role, but the Ravens want to make sure he's fully healthy before putting him back in the lineup.
"I think it'll depend on Matt, where Matt's at, and how ready he is to play," Harbaugh said. "Matt looks like he's going to be able to play. He got bounced around pretty good in the game – too much – and we'll just see how he makes it through the week. I think he's going to be OK; he's a tough guy."
QB Joe Flacco
In other quarterback news, Harbaugh announced that Flacco will have surgery Tuesday to repair the knee injury that ended his season. Flacco tore his ACL and MCL against St. Louis in Week 11, and the swelling has finally gone down to allow for the surgery.
"He is going to have surgery tomorrow at 10 o'clock with Dr. [James] Andrews down in Alabama, and he was there today to get his pre-surgical examination done," Harbaugh said.
