Mark Andrews has been a massive part of the Baltimore Ravens’ offense over the past few years. Playing from the tight end position, he has been the team’s leading receiver in 3 of the past 4 years, and is the favorite target and safety blanket for NFL MVP front-runner Lamar Jackson.
NFL: Mark Andrews Activated, Should Play Against Chiefs
Ravens activate TE Mark Andrews from IR, will play in AFC Championship game. (via @rapsheet) pic.twitter.com/hF4Fe7EWPa
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2024
Andrews was well on his way to being the team’s leader again in 2023, but a cracked fibula and an ankle ligament injury cut his regular season short, and he finished with 544 yards in just 9 games played. More importantly, the team was now without their most reliable receiver, as he was placed on IR with what was thought to be the season-ending ailment.
Baltimore survived without Andrews. They won the rest of their regular season games (that the starters played in) in order to secure the #1 overall seed in the AFC, and the other weapons that Jackson has at his disposal stepped up in the tight end’s absence. Zay Flowers’ 858 yards were the 2nd most by a Ravens’ wide receiver since Jackson became the team’s starter.
On Friday, it was announced by the team that they had activated Andrews to the 53-man roster, and the hope is that he will get to play this Sunday.
Andrews Has Had His Struggles Against KC
Now official: The #Ravens have activated All-Pro TE Mark Andrews from Injured Reserve and he’ll play on Sunday in the AFC Title game against the #Chiefs.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 26, 2024
Jackson, Andrews, and the Ravens will be taking on the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship this weekend, and they boast the 4th-best passing defense in the league in terms of both yards and touchdowns. They are also the 8th-best in the NFL when it comes to red zone defense, which is an area in which Jackson and Andrews excel.
And while it could be coincidental, the betting line on the game shifted around the time that it was announced that Andrews had been activated. What opened as a three point spread at the conclusion of last week’s NFL action, had moved up to 3.5 throughout the first part of the week, and boosted up another half-point on Friday morning to enter the weekend with the Ravens being a full 4-point favorite.
In four career games against Kansas City, Andrews has just 11 total catches and averages 23.5 yards per contest. In the most recent meeting between the two sides, he caught 5 balls for 57 yards.
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