The Baltimore Ravens won't be at full strength on Sunday night when they open their NFL regular season in Buffalo against the Bills.
Young tight end Isaiah Likely will be on the sideline injured, not on the field.
On Wednesday, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that Likely "is not expected to play" against the Bills. Likely is recovering from a broken bone in his foot.
"Likely underwent surgery in late July and is healing as expected," Rapoport writes. "He should be ready early in the season."
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Likely, a fourth-round pick in 2022, is coming off his best NFL season.
He played in 16 games in 2024 and caught 42 passes for 477 yards and six touchdowns.
In his career, he has 14 TD catches despite being the TE2 for the majority of his time in Baltimore.
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The Ravens will still have a strong tight end presence against the Bills in the form of veteran Mark Andrews. Andrews will be looking for some redemption against Buffalo. When these teams met in the playoffs, Andrews had a critical drop that essentially lost the game for Baltimore.
Likely's status going forward was likely signaled already last week, when the Ravens chose not to place him on the physically unable to perform list and instead keep him on the 53-man roster. If Likely had gone on the PUP list, he would've had to miss at least four weeks. It seems like the Ravens expect him back sooner.
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But at least for Week 1, Likely isn't expected to be out there, and it's at least a bit of a blow to Baltimore's chances.
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