Ravens coach John Harbaugh was noncommittal Monday about the possibility that tight end Mark Andrews and cornerback Marlon Humphrey could return for Sunday’s AFC championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Ravens didn’t need either All-Pro in Saturday’s divisional-round win over the Houston Texans. Tight end Isaiah Likely continued his hot streak, catching two passes for 34 yards, including a 15-yard touchdown. The Ravens’ defense, meanwhile, limited Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, who’d led the league in passing yards per game (273.9), to 175 on 19-for-33 passing.
Andrews’ return seems closer. He was a full participant in practice Wednesday and Thursday, continuing his faster-than-expected return from ankle surgery over two months ago. But Andrews wasn’t activated off injured reserve Friday, sidelining him for Saturday’s game.
“We’ll just see how he goes,” Harbaugh said. “We’re looking forward to it. He practiced last week, and I’m sure he’ll practice again this week. If he’s ready to play, he’ll play.”
Humphrey hasn’t practiced since suffering a calf injury in the Ravens’ Week 17 win over the Miami Dolphins. He also missed the first four weeks of the season while recovering from foot surgery and another two weeks in November with a separate calf injury.
“I promise you, if Marlon can go, he will,” Harbaugh said. “If he can practice, he will. I think you’ll see it as the week goes on, based on how much he practices, you’ll probably get a pretty good feel for it. I’m pretty sure if he could be out there, he’ll for sure be out there. So I’m very hopeful and we’ll just have to see what happens.”
If Humphrey is unavailable, the Ravens will again rely on one of the NFL’s deepest cornerback rooms to defend star quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
“Ronald Darby has played outstanding. Brandon Stephens has played outstanding. Arthur Maulet has played outstanding. Rock [Ya-Sin] has played outstanding,” Harbaugh said. “All of those guys have stepped up and played very good. The coverage has just been great.”
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