A new-look Baltimore Ravens squad will be on the hunt to win a Super Bowl in the coming season. John Harbaugh is getting a Lamar Jackson with a chip on his shoulder after losing out to the Kansas City Chiefs. They also added an insane rushing option in Derrick Henry to get the squad some yardage. Every member of the Ravens faithful seems so excited to see this new core. However, their NFL Preseason matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles might not feature these big names.
John Harbaugh has elected not to field a majority of the Ravens’ starters in their matchup against the Eagles. Clearly, it is just an NFL Preseason game and they do not want to risk any form of fatigue when it comes to their players.
To start off, the Ravens are not going to have Lamar Jackson in their rotation. The 2024 Most Valuable Player of the league will then likely be replaced by Josh Johnson, per Cameron Johnson of the NFL Network. The secondary signal-caller could be playing big minutes for Harbaugh’s squad such that they are able to preserve Jackson for the postseason.
The same call has been made for Derrick Henry. Harbaugh and the Ravens have decided that his official debut will most probably be when they face the Chiefs. This happens in the first week of regular season action. This means that Justice Hill will be getting a lot of minutes in the NFL Preseason. He will also probably be the Ravens’ backup since Keaton Mitchell got injured. Owen Wright and Rasheen Ali could also make appearances. This is such that they get some reps in case some rotational problems happen for the Ravens.
John Harbaugh is not so sure about the Ravens’ offensive line
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Moreover, their main offensive line has also not been set for the Eagles clash in the NFL Preseason. However, there are a few big candidates who could very well be at the top of their depth chart and become staples in the rotation. Ronnie Stanley, Tyler Linderbaum, Andrew Vorhees, and Daniel Faalele have all proven to be worthy of starting for the Ravens. Their rookies Roger Rosengarten, Julian Pearl, Nick Samac, and Darrell Simpson could also become staples once the season progresses.
Overall, these are all fairly smart moves against the Eagles. The Ravens do not have to make a statement as early as NFL Preseason to prove that they are perennial contenders. They do, however, need to preserve their core. This is such that they are ready for the bruises and bumps that come when the season commences.
Jay Postrado is a sports writer for ClutchPoints, with expertise in covering the NBA, NFL, MLB, Tennis, and Formula 1. He also has bylines at Last Word on Sports and FanSided.