The Ravens stashed tight end Dennis Pitta on injured reserve with the possibility of returning at the start of the season in hopes of getting a late-season contribution from the tight end after he recovered from a preseason hip injury.
Pitta is eligible to start practicing with the team and would be free to play in the Ravens’ Week Nine game because he’d have spent the necessary eight weeks on injured reserve, but it doesn’t sound like that’s a realistic possibility.
Ed Werder of ESPN reports that that Pitta has been working out regularly as part of his rehab from the injury and the team still expects that he’ll be able to make it back this season, although the projected date of that return is about a month away. Per Werder, Baltimore anticipates Pitta being out through mid-to-late November before he will make it back onto the field.
Dallas Clark leads Ravens tight ends with 23 catches for 265 yards this season while Ed Dickson has caught just seven passes and heard coach John Harbaugh castigate him for regressing in recent years. Getting Pitta, who had 61 catches last season, back would help a scuffling offense, but it looks like they’ll need to find help elsewhere a little while longer.