Ravens place 4 defensive players on Reserve/COVID-19 list; declare 2 starters out for Week 3

The Baltimore Ravens will be shorthanded in the trenches on the defense when they head to the Motor City this weekend. On Friday afternoon, the Ravens placed four players on the Reserve/COVID-19 list ahead of their Week 3 matchup with the Detroit Lions.

This announcement comes hours after news broke that Ferguson tested positive for COVID-19 and the Ravens would conduct contact tracing to determine any potential close contacts. The other players placed on the list did not test positive but will join the third-year edge rusher in missing this week's game all the same.

It remains to be seen how long any of the players will be out without knowing their vaccination status. Unvaccinated players have to miss a mandatory 10 days but vaccinated players can be activated from the list after producing two negative tests at least 24 hours apart.

This development leaves the Ravens with just four outside linebackers and three interior defensive linemen on the active roster to play this Sunday. Expect to see fifth-round rookie Daelin Hayes make his regular season debut after practicing fully on Friday. Plus, an even heavier workload for standout rookie Odafe Oweh and veteran outside linebacker Pernell McPhe, who may see more snaps lined up inside. The Ravens will also likely call up defensive tackle Kahlil McKenzie from the practice squad to provide depth on the defensive line.

In other unfortunate roster related news, All-Pro left tackle Ronnie Stanley will miss his second consecutive game and veteran defensive tackle Derek Wolfe has been ruled for a third straight week.

Stanley hasn't practiced the past two weeks as he deals with issues related to his surgically repaired ankle. Wolfe has yet to appear in a game this year and could be a candidate to be places on short-term injured reserve.