Ravens Could Lose Pro Bowl LB for Multiple Weeks

His setback isn't a season-ending hit to the 34-year-old, according to head coach John Harbaugh, as he, along with fellow injured Ravens in Marlon Humphrey and Rasheen Ali are expected to return to the team relatively shortly. Coming off of last season's unparalleled injury fortune, it was unlikely that the Ravens would skate through the very next campaign without a few dings.

Van Noy hammered out a career-year on last year's Ravens, making his first-ever Pro Bowl appearance with a team-high 12.5 sacks. Still, his age remained a factor to monitor, with Baltimore's call to draft his potential successor early in the 2025 NFL Draft already looking like an inspired decision.

They pulled the trigger on bringing in Mike Green in the second round, who looked early on like one of the steals of the draft with his speed and power at his size. He was far from the biggest pass-rusher on the board, but the Ravens fell in love with his raw talent that quickly revealed itself in the preseason.

He's already been thrown into the rotational mix at outside linebacker, getting plenty of snaps alongside Tavius Robinson and Odafe Oweh. He was marketed as one of the best sack threats in his class, and though he hasn't quite established that part of his game, Green's already applied a few pressures. He's got three tackles to his name, as well as a quarterback hit that nearly turned into his first career sack on Sunday in the Ravens' 41-17 win over the Cleveland Browns.

Van Noy said just before the season started that the rookie, as talented as he was, would have to prove himself to the veteran before he earned his locker room stripes, but it's looking increasingly likely that Green's going to have to continue impressing his new coaching staff, too. Harbaugh's already shown willingness to throw fellow draft classmate Malaki Starks into the mix at safety, and he'll need his other Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate to similarly figure it out on the fly.

Van Noy and his ability to crash a quarterback's pocket will be missed as the Ravens are forced to continue on with their already-patchy pass-rush unit, but they have the raw tools to make up for his absence.