The AFC’s top-seeded Baltimore Ravens got a significant boost to their offense on Friday.
Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews has been activated from injured reserve ahead of Sunday afternoon’s AFC Championship game against the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. Andrews had to undergo ankle surgery on November 21 after suffering the injury in Baltimore’s 34–20 win against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 11. He has not played since then.
“Here we are now going to the AFC Championship Game. I’m feeling healthy. I’m feeling good,” Andrews said Friday. “I’m excited to help this team in this upcoming game. I probably spend four to six hours here every day with workouts and rehab. At home, there’s the hyperbaric oxygen chamber and different things like that. My The whole day is dedicated to getting better. …About three weeks ago we started talking about (returning to play this season), and you start going over in your mind what’s going to happen. Is.”
Andrews practiced every day last week: limited Tuesday and full participants Wednesday and Thursday. Andrews entered the divisional round as questionable, but did not play. Andrews was again a full practice participant on both Wednesday and Thursday this week. He is making sure to stick to the team’s playbook and film study every week despite not being able to physically perform.
“Mentally, you have to stay on top of it,” Andrews said. “You have to be healthy with your mind, be healthy with your body. That’s everything to me. Pushing myself every day and believing that I’m able to come back. It’s easy to do that when you have a great team.” Have teammates who say every day, ‘We’re going to keep winning for you…by the time you get back, it’s going to be over.'”
The three-time Pro Bowler and 2021 first-team All-Pro has 40 career receiving touchdowns since entering the league in 2018, the second-most in the NFL behind Travis Kelce’s 52. Andrews’ 55.8 career receiving yards per game rank second. as the sixth-hardest finish in league history. His 54.4 receiving yards per game as well as his six receiving touchdowns led Baltimore in the regular season despite missing seven games.
Andrews will return to catch passes from his 2018 NFL Draft classmate, 2023 first-team All-Pro quarterback Lamar Jackson. The 2019 NFL MVP has won his last seven starts, six of which were against teams with winning records, while totaling 18 touchdowns to just two turnovers in that span. The Ravens have won those games by an average of 17.3 points per game.
Andrews said of Jackson’s play this season, “It’s a great ball. He’s throwing it. He’s running it. He’s making everybody’s job easier and making the defense’s job harder.” “He’s the MVP right there, and he’s playing at that level.”
Throughout his career, Andrews has caught more passes (287) than the other two Ravens players and has more receiving yards (3,789) and receiving touchdowns (33) than Jackson has thrown for. It’s safe to say Jackson is happy to have his top target back. His return to practice has been smooth, according to his quarterback.
“He’s looking good. He’s looking sharp,” Jackson said of Andrews on Friday. “It’s speeding up the (reunification) process. That feels great.”
Getting production from Lamar Jackson
Jackson will now have two big weapons to throw to the middle of the field against the Chiefs and will likely play alongside Andrews against their second-ranked scoring defense (allowing 17.3 points per game in the regular season) and fellow tight end Isaiah . , a second-year player whom Baltimore selected in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Andrews’ production has likely essentially been copied this season since the Pro Bowler suffered an ankle injury.
Ravens 2023 TE production (including playoffs)
|
Duration |
through week 11 |
from week 12 |
|
REC YPG |
54.4 |
50.9 |
|
rec td |
6 |
6 |
*Has not played since suffering ankle injury in Week 11
When asked about Andrews fighting to play again this season, Jackson said, “It means a lot to all of us.” “What it means to me is that I have another security blanket on the field. Him, possibly and the rest of the guys. I’m ready for that right now.”
