Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers became the first wide receiver in Ravens history to reach the Pro Bowl this season. Baltimore’s WR1 had one catch for 12 yards and one rush for nine yards before his day came to an early end in Week 18 due to a knee injury.
Let’s examine Flowers’ status for the Wild Card Round game against the Pittsburgh Steelers this weekend.
Flowers Sits Out Practice, Status for Saturday in the Air
On Wednesday morning, NFL Network Ian Rapoport reported that Flowers is a “long shot” to play this weekend against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
He added that he has a chance to return if the Ravens advance to the Divisional Round but that Flowers is very sore.
Well, it turns out Rapoport was right. On Thursday, the Ravens announced that Flowers had been ruled out due to his knee injury.
From @GMFB: #Ravens WR Zay Flowers is a long-shot to play; Mike Vrabel interviews with the #Patriots tomorrow; The #Raiders fired Antonio Pierce after one season. pic.twitter.com/oND1JrxPZU
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 8, 2025
Flowers initially suffered the injury in the second quarter of Baltimore’s Week 18 matchup against the Cleveland Browns. He went down clutching his right knee on a 12-yard reception with 12:16 left in the second quarter. While it was a frightening image for Ravens fans, he was able to walk off the field under his own power.
However, he still went to the medical tent and later the locker room for further examination.
After initially being ruled questionable to return, Flowers was eventually ruled out at the start of the second half.
Baltimore head coach John Harbaugh was measured in his postgame assessment. The Ravens head coach noted that Flowers’ playoff availability was up in the air but stopped short of ruling him out.
“It’s not a season-ending injury, so it’s just going to be day-to-day,” Harbaugh told reporters on Monday, Jan. 6. “[Flowers] is going to try to do everything he can do to get back as soon as he can, and we’ll see where that takes us.”
Reports claimed that Flowers suffered a knee sprain. However, Harbaugh declined to comment on the nature or the extent of the injury.
This is a major loss for Lamar Jackson and the Ravens’ offense.
Flowers not only became Baltimore’s first 1,000-yard receiver since 2021 this season but the team’s first Pro Bowl receiver in franchise history.
While Flowers is out, the Ravens should have safety Kyle Hamilton (knee) and running back Justice Hill (concussion/illness) against the Steelers.
Hamilton was briefly shaken up during the game against Cleveland but returned soon thereafter. Hill has missed the past two games, the first due to a concussion and the second due to illness.
Guard Patrick Mekari returned to practice after playing only six snaps against the Browns due to illness. Return specialist and backup wide receiver Deonte Harty, who has been out since Week 6 with a knee injury, was a full participant after seeing his practice window opened for a return from injured reserve.