Few players make the engine of the Baltimore Ravens defense go like second-year safety Kyle Hamilton.
Hamilton has done it all for Baltimore in his second season, accumulating two interceptions, nine passes defended, three sacks, 69 tackles and nine tackles for loss. With a forced fumble, Hamilton will be the first player since Ravens Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed to have multiple sacks, interceptions, and forced fumbles in a single season since 2004.
Whether Hamilton will be able to accomplish that feat on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars is a different question. The second-year safety is dealing with a knee injury that limited him in practice throughout the week and is questionable to play against Jacksonville (8-5).
Ravens (10-3) defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald spoke about Hamilton's impact on defense and how he plans to make up for his absence if he's unable to play.
"[He is] such a unique player, so you can use him uniquely," Macdonald said. "If he's not out there, not one guy is going to do the things that he can do. We have people that can go in and perform at a high level, which you've seen, but it probably won't be just one person filling the roles that we'd have him play. We can get there through [different] personnel and different calls and things to kind of alleviate the stress of not having him out there."
Baltimore's defense has been one of the best in football, as they lead the NFL in sacks (49) and are second in yards (284.4) and points (16.8) allowed per game. If Hamilton can't go, it'd be a big blow to a team looking to separate itself from the pack in the race for the No. 1 seed in the AFC.
The Ravens face the Jaguars on Sunday Night Football at EverBank Stadium at 8:20 p.m. ET.
More must-reads: