The Ravens released their Week 9 depth chart on Monday, three days before a short-week Thursday night home game against the first-place Jaguars. It is the first chart since Sunday's 36-10 loss in Buffalo, where Baltimore lost two quarterbacks in the first half and dropped to 4-4.
The quarterback listing is the first thing to look at, and it doesn't tell the whole story. Lamar Jackson is still printed at No. 1, but with the team's injury marker beside his name. He hurt his right thumb on the first offensive snap against the Bills, needs surgery, and is headed to injured reserve, which will keep him out at least four games. Head coach Jesse Minter said "potentially" when asked whether Jackson's season could be over. Tyler Huntley is listed second, though Minter said Monday that Huntley "probably" won't play Thursday because of a toe injury believed to be turf toe. That leaves undrafted rookie Joe Fagnano, the third name on the chart, as the most likely starter. He went 10-of-21 for 91 yards with an interception in relief Sunday, and Minter said he is playing through knee and ankle issues of his own.
The offensive line looks very different from Week 1. Cam Jurgens, acquired from Philadelphia on Oct. 7 after Baltimore's top three centers landed on injured reserve, is the starting center. Vega Ioane is back at right guard after missing the Bills game with an MCL sprain, and he is also listed as Jurgens' backup at center, the spot he filled during the injury crisis in early October.
Below is the full offense, defense and special teams breakdown, exactly as released by the team.
Offense
| Pos | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|
| WR | 4 Zay Flowers | 81 Devontez Walker | 13 Elijah Sarratt |
| WR | 7 Rashod Bateman | 6 Ja'Kobi Lane | 10 LaJohntay Wester |
| LT | 79 Ronnie Stanley | 76 Carson Vinson | — |
| LG | 74 John Simpson | 51 Emery Jones Jr. | 60 Kyle Hergel |
| C | 64 Cam Jurgens | 71 Vega Ioane* | 60 Kyle Hergel |
Jurgens has held the job since arriving in an Oct. 7 trade with the Eagles, and Ioane is the emergency answer at center for a second time this season. | |||
| RG | 71 Vega Ioane* | 72 Andrew Vorhees | 60 Kyle Hergel |
Ioane missed the Bills game with a knee injury. Hergel is listed third at all three interior line spots. | |||
| RT | 70 Roger Rosengarten | 76 Carson Vinson | — |
| TE | 89 Mark Andrews | 85 Josh Cuevas | — |
| TE | 88 Matt Hibner | 87 Nick Vannett | — |
| QB | 8 Lamar Jackson^ | 5 Tyler Huntley | 12 Joe Fagnano |
Jackson is listed as injured and headed to IR after thumb surgery. Minter said Huntley probably won't play Thursday, which points to Fagnano for his first career start. | |||
| RB | 22 Derrick Henry | 43 Justice Hill | 26 Rasheen Ali |
Defense
| Pos | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|
| DT | 92 Nnamdi Madubuike | 96 Broderick Washington Jr. | — |
| NT | 98 Travis Jones | 94 John Jenkins | — |
| DE | 93 Calais Campbell | 90 Aeneas Peebles | — |
| RUSH | 91 Trey Hendrickson | 15 Mike Green | — |
| MLB | 0 Roquan Smith | 49 Jay Higgins IV | — |
| WLB | 32 Trenton Simpson | 40 Teddye Buchanan | — |
| SAM | 15 Mike Green | 9 Zion Young | 97 Ethan Burke |
With Tavius Robinson lost for the season to a pectoral injury, Green starts at SAM while also backing up Hendrickson at RUSH, with rookies Young and Burke behind him. | |||
| CB | 44 Marlon Humphrey | 3 Chidobe Awuzie | — |
| DB | 14 Kyle Hamilton | 38 Keyon Martin | 29 Chandler Rivers |
| SS | 21 Jaylinn Hawkins* | 39 Keondre Jackson | — |
| FS | 24 Malaki Starks | 25 K'Von Wallace | — |
Hawkins is back atop the strong safety spot after missing the last two games with a knee injury, and Wallace is back on the chart behind Starks. | |||
| CB | 2 Nate Wiggins | 27 T.J. Tampa Jr. | — |
Special Teams
| Pos | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|
| P | 30 Ryan Eckley | — | — |
| K | 33 Tyler Loop | — | — |
| H | 30 Ryan Eckley | — | — |
| LS | 46 Nick Moore | — | — |
| KOR | 10 LaJohntay Wester | 26 Rasheen Ali | 43 Justice Hill |
| PR | 10 LaJohntay Wester | 13 Elijah Sarratt | — |
What the Chart Tells Us
The quarterback line is a formality until the IR move is official. Teams often leave an injured starter on the chart until the transaction goes through, and Jackson's injury tag says what the depth order doesn't. The real question is whether Huntley can push through a toe injury on three days' rest or whether Fagnano, who took almost no first-team reps before Sunday, starts against a 5-2 Jacksonville team. Baltimore has also signed former Bears quarterback Austin Reed, who spent the preseason with the team, to the practice squad for depth, and the trade deadline isn't until Nov. 10, so this group could still change before kickoff.
Only one starter on the interior line is the same as in Week 1. John Simpson is still at left guard. The center spot has gone from Jovaughn Gwyn to Ethan Pocic to Ioane to Jurgens, and the backups have been reshuffled too: Emery Jones Jr. now backs up left guard, Andrew Vorhees backs up right guard, and Kyle Hergel is the third option at every interior spot. Getting Ioane back matters a lot for a run game that has to carry the offense without Jackson.
The front seven is mostly intact, with one change at SAM. Madubuike, Jones, Campbell, Hendrickson, Smith and Simpson are all where they were in Week 1. Tavius Robinson, who opened the season as the starter there, is out for the year with a pectoral injury, so Mike Green has moved into the SAM starting job while keeping his backup role at RUSH. Weakside linebacker is listed as Simpson first and Buchanan second, with no "or" between them.
The secondary returns to full strength on paper. Hawkins rejoins Starks and Hamilton in the three-safety look Baltimore has used all year. Wallace's return gives the Ravens separate backups at strong and free safety, after Keondre Jackson covered both spots in Week 1. T.J. Tampa Jr. is now listed behind Nate Wiggins, with Chidobe Awuzie behind Marlon Humphrey.
Ten rookies remain on the chart, and their roles have grown. Ioane, Eckley and tight end Matt Hibner are first-teamers. Hibner moved into the No. 2 tight end job alongside Mark Andrews, with veteran Nick Vannett behind him. Fagnano could make it four rookie starters by Thursday night. Elsewhere, LaJohntay Wester has taken over as the No. 1 kickoff returner ahead of Rasheen Ali, while still handling punt returns.
Kickoff Information
Matchup: Jacksonville Jaguars at Baltimore Ravens
When: Thursday, Nov. 5, 8:15 p.m. ET
Where: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore
TV/Streaming: Prime Video (Thursday Night Football)
Line: Jaguars -8 1/2
Underlined names indicate rookies. ^ denotes injured; * denotes a player who missed the last game with an injury. This depth chart is updated weekly at baltimoresportsfeed.com/ravens-depth-chart.html, where every previous week is archived and browsable, including Week 1's chart.