The Baltimore Ravens returned to practice for the first time since the season opener on Sunday and had a scary moment when All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton suffered an injury with 20 minutes left. Hamilton was led to the sideline where trainers examined him before leaving the practice field. Hamilton left the field under his own power with a slight limp on his left leg.
After practice, head coach John Harbaugh said the initial signs were “stable.”
“Looks stable, looks good,” Harbaugh said. “Obviously we’ll do some more tests tonight and tomorrow to make sure, but early signs are that he’s doing well.”
During the team drill where he went down, Hamilton backed away and attempted to recover the ball in 11-on-11 play, then was controlled by quarterback Lamar Jackson and tight end Isaiah Likely before getting up and walking away under his own power.
The 2022 first-round pick is coming off a breakout 2023 season that saw him named to the Pro Bowl and First Team All Pro for the first time in his career. Missing him for any amount of time in the regular season would be a major blow to the Ravens’ defense, which was the best in the league last year and is trying to maintain that dominant standard under new coordinator Zach Orr.
Hamilton is a unique talent that assistant head coach and defensive passing game coordinator Chris Hewitt called a “unicorn” and that many of his coaches and teammates consider “one of a kind.” His positional versatility is critical to the success of the entire defensive unit, as he enters the 2024 season as a legitimate candidate for Defensive Player of the Year.
The Ravens still have eighth-year veteran Marcus Williams and two-time Pro Bowler Eddie Jackson, both of whom are natural free safeties, as well as fourth-year pro Ar’Darius Washington, who can play Hamilton’s hybrid strong safety/nickel role, but nowhere near the same devastating extent.
