When we heard that Kenneth Dixon had partially torn his meniscus, there was hope that he’d be back in time to play right after his suspension. Alas, that is not to be the case:
Source: #Ravens RB Kenneth Dixon will be out for the season. He had his medial meniscus repaired today – not trimmed. Out 4-5 months. Brutal
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 25, 2017
Our staff react to this disheartening news:
Joe Polek
Danny Woodhead has become a very important signing… More important with every passing week. As deep as the Ravens used to be at TE and RB, those positions are getting awfully short on talent. Time for Ozzie to make one of his famous August signings.
Carey Stevenson
Brutal blow for Dixon here. He’s got legit feature back talent but the odds of it coming to fruition in Baltimore take a huge hit.
For the Ravens, this injury creates interesting long-term questions. In the short term, Terrance West will now fully inherit the early down role, a role I expect him to do well in. But he’s also a free agent at season’s end.
Is he the type talent you pay and commit to as a feature back? How will what looks to be a loaded 2018 running back draft class factor in that decision?
How does the team view Dixon in 2018?
Fascinating questions ahead.
Derek Arnold
People want to split hairs with me when I say that the Ravens have already lost three starters to injury before training camp even starts. In today’s NFL, I consider cornerbacks 1-3 to be “starters.” Throw in Jimmy Smith‘s durability issues, and I think it’s fair to call Tavon Young a starter, or at least the team’s second-best cornerback. Dennis Pitta wasn’t scaring opposing defenses, but he was Joe Flacco‘s safety blanket and would have very likely been number one on the depth chart.
And now Dixon. Sure, West is the “starter.” Woodhead will be a nice receiving option and change of pace. But Dixon was the only back on the team putting any fear into defensive coordinators, and now he’s lost.
Maybe we’re getting the injuries out of the way early, and the Ravens will be relatively healthy from this point. But that damn bug seems to be permanently residing in Baltimore.
Brian Bower
Injuries are mounting at positions of need already for the Ravens. While Dixon was to miss the first four games of the season, his injury hurts considering the jump he was expected to make in 2017.
Here’s hoping West and Woodhead are placed in bubble wrap starting Thursday.
Ryan Jones
This is disappointing news for the Ravens and Dixon, especially considering it happened while training. However this depletes the offense from a depth standpoint and not much else.
There’s been a lot of hype around Dixon since he got drafted and he was viewed as the biggest “draft steal” last year but he hasn’t contributed much of anything to this point. West was going to be the Ravens every down back and Woodhead will play a big role. While this news is a let down I disagree with those who view this as a major loss. Dixon might evolve into a playmaker at some point but he hasn’t yet and he obviously won’t this year.
We’ll add more reactions as they roll in…
