CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns listed six players, including five starters, as questionable for Sunday’s AFC North Division game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, and three are in the secondary.
The Browns listed safety Morgan Burnett (quadriceps), cornerbacks Denzel Ward (hamstring) and Greedy Williams (hamstring), right tackle Chris Hubbard (foot) and wide receiver Rashard “Hollywood” Higgins (knee) as questionable for the team’s first AFC North Division game of the year.
Also, rookie safety Sheldrick Redwine (hamstring) was listed as questionable, while offensive lineman Kendall Lamm will miss his third consecutive game because of a knee injury.
Hubbard missed last Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams, but he was able to return to practice on a limited basis throughout the week.
“I thought he moved around better today, and it is good to have him back out there,” Browns coach Freddie Kitchens said following Friday’s practice in Berea. “We will see where he is come game time.”
If Higgins is unable to go for the third straight week, second-year receiver Damion Ratley figures to be a more prominent player within the offense.
Through three games this season, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound Ratley has been on the receiving end of seven passes for 93 yards and a 13.3 yards-per-reception average.
“I have been really happy with Rat,” Kitchens said. “He missed most of training camp, so getting him back before the start of the year was big for us. He just needs to continue to get better each day.”
Regardless of who is on the 46-man game day roster and who is deemed inactive, Kitchens and the Browns have the same mission.
Although the Browns enter this week’s game at Baltimore with a 1-2 record, a win over the Ravens would vault them into first place in the AFC North Division, and they are looking at the rivalry game as an opportunity to right a lot of wrongs from the losses to the Tennessee Titans and Rams.
“I think we have had a good week of preparation,” Kitchens said. “The attention to detail picked up a lot this week, not that it was not that way before, but our scout team gave a terrific look this week.
“At the end of the day, my ultimate job is to get the best players on the field. That is something that you struggle with as a coach sometimes. You have to weigh the good and the bad and see where it is.”