The Baltimore Ravens may be faced with a major issue in the secondary, as the team has now lost two of its three starters to injury in a week.
Just days after the Baltimore Ravens lost Nate Wiggins to a significant injury, fellow starting cornerback Marlon Humphrey suffered an injury of his own.
Wiggins' case was far more severe, as he got tangled up with rookie wide receiver Ja'Kobi Lane and fell to the ground. He had to be helped by trainers and was carted off the field.
The update on Wiggins thus far is that he did not suffer any torn ligaments, but head coach Jesse Minter has not offered any update on how long he may be out. Humphrey also left practice early on Wednesday, but no updates on what the injury was have been provided.
Now, the Ravens are faced with a situation where they may be without two of their key players on defense.
When speaking to the media following practice, defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver shed some light on the situation, indicating that the team has plenty of solid depth players who can step up should Wiggins and Humphrey be out for an extended period.
"Yeah. Well, fortunately, I think we have a bunch of good ones, right? Expect those guys, and prayers, you know, prayers go out for those guys. Hope that they can be back as soon as possible. But we have a lot of good ones. I think TJ Tampa's had a tremendous camp," Weaver said.
Tampa has drawn plenty of praise in recent weeks at training camp, and Weaver pointed to the upcoming third-year cornerback as being a player that the Ravens can lean on to step into a prominent role.
Minter echoed the same kind of sentiment when he spoke to reporters following the Wiggins injury.
"Cheeto, I mean, this guy's played a ton of football, played at a really high level. I think he's had a great camp up to this point. T.J. Tampa's done a lot of great things. Keyon Martin's done a lot of good stuff. Chandler's done a lot of great stuff. We got some young guys battling for trust and spots, and so I feel really good about the secondary overall," Minter said.
Both Minter and Weaver spoke about the depth of the Ravens' secondary, which will presumably now be tested in a major way.
The loss of Wiggins was one thing, but Humphrey now being injured adds another bigger curve ball to the injuries for Baltimore.
Baltimore is set for their first preseason matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on Aug. 15, and Minter already established that the "established" players would not be out on the field. That may have included both Wiggins and Humphrey, regardless of their injuries.
The injuries also give Minter and the coaching staff the chance to evaluate the younger players on the roster, such as Tampa.
Tampa spoke about staying ready, and this could be his time to shine if he is put into a starting role for the Eagles preseason matchup and beyond.
"I really just wanted to show like I'm reliable and I'm here to put the work in. I'm here to show up when my time is needed," Tampa said.
Tampa may be joined by Chidobe Awuzie as the starters for the cornerback room, should both Wiggins and Humphrey be out for multiple weeks.
Thus far, this is no established timeline of return for either cornerback, but Wiggins may be the more serious case. He was carted off the field, as opposed to Humphrey, who simply had to exit practice early.
That is not to say that Humphrey did not suffer anything significant.
