Ravens All Pro Poached From Practice Squad

Gray is a renowned special teams ace who has earned Pro Bowl and three All Pro honors for his prowess in the unheralded third phase of the game. The Ravens swiftly signed him to the practice squad two days after he was surprisingly released by the New Orleans Saints in early September, and were looking forward to the potential impact he could have on their special teams unit that was uncharacteristically one of the worst in the league last year.

"It is very exciting to have a guy like that," Ravens special teams coordinator Chris Horton said about the signing at the time. "As a special teams coach, you look for guys like that, and to have that guy just sitting out there for us to be able to get him and get him here, it's just going to be fun."

Unfortunately for Horton, he won't get a chance to deploy Gray in Baltimore are he is headed to the Mile High City before he could ever take snap for the Charm City franchise as the Ravens placed him on the practice squad injured reserve list on Sept. 16. He will now be reuniting with not only his former head coach from his first four years in the league, Sean Payton, but the only special teams coordinator he has ever actually played for, Darren Rizzi, who joined the Broncos coaching staff this offseason.

The Ravens were likely hoping that Lowery would clear waivers so that they could re-sign him to the practice squad, where he could take Gray's vacated spot and join fellow undrafted rookie Keondre Jackson as developmental prospects who could get called up to play special teams roles as needed. Instead, the first-year pro, who consistently stood out from rookie minicamp through the preseason, will get a fresh start with a new team.

After the Ravens acquired veteran Alohi Gilman via trade with the Los Angeles Chargers and signed Chauncey Gardner-Johnson to the practice squad, there wasn't much of a role or roster spot left for Lowery. The former University of Tennessee Chattanooga standout showcased impressive instincts and ball skills during his short-lived stint with the team, but couldn't carry them over to the regular season as he was one of five rookie starters who struggled mightily in the Ravens' Week 5 loss to the Houston Texans.