BEREA — The big mystery of who will start at quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens when they play at the Browns on Saturday may be close to being solved.
The Ravens, as expected, ruled out Lamar Jackson for the second consecutive game due to a knee injury. However they listed no game-status designation on Jackson's backup, Tyler Huntley , making it likely he'll be the starter.
Huntley's status early in the week had been in doubt due to a concussion he sustained in last Sunday's win over the Pittsburgh Steelers . However, he was a full practice participant the last two days, and told Baltimore reporters on Thursday he had cleared the concussion protocol on Wednesday.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh refused to specifically name Huntley the starter for Saturday's game when asked on Thursday. However, his statement seemed to make clear he would be going with the third-year pro out of Utah.
"As far as injuries, I'm not really going to talk too much about that," Harbaugh said. "It's going to be on the injury report; it will be straightforward when you see the injury report, in terms of who's what. That will be our statement on it."
The Browns have talked all week about preparing for any possibility from the Ravens at quarterback. However, Jackson never seemed likely to play due to the injury.
Huntley isn't an unfamiliar to the Browns. In some ways, he's just as much an issue as Jackson is with his ability to run.
"God damn, he's fast," defensive end Myles Garrett said of Huntley. "He's fast, he's elusive. He's a lot of the things that Lamar is really, he just needs a little bit more polish and I think he could be that capable of a player if he gets a chance somewhere. But, I mean, it just felt like you were trying to chase down a chicken with, like, I don't know, doused in honey or something."
The Browns saw Huntley the last time Baltimore came to Cleveland, on Dec. 12 of last year. He came on in the second quarter after Jackson sustained a season-ending ankle injury and nearly erased a 17-0 deficit in what ended up a 24-22 Browns win.
Huntley was 27-of-38 passing for 270 yards and a touchdown against the Browns. He also ran for 45 yards on six carries.
"Like I said, if he doesn't like what he sees, he can pull the ball down and make guys miss," safety John Johnson III said. "He can make throws. He is very similar to No. 8 (Jackson). Obviously, No. 8 is the guy, but just have to be ready to go because they are all good quarterbacks."
Rookie receiver David Bell missed Thursday's practice due to injuries to his thumb and his toe. The Browns listed him as questionable for Saturday's game.
Bell was dealing with similar injuries heading into last Sunday's loss at Cincinnati. He played 49 offensive and five special-teams snaps against the Bengals , catching three passes for 27 yards and recording one tackle on special teams.
Stefanski said the team would "see how he does over the next 48 hours" before making a final decision on his status against the Ravens. He's the only Browns player with a game-status designation.
The other receiver battling significant injury issues is Amari Cooper . Cooper has been battling what he called a "core muscle injury" since last Thursday's practice in advance of the Bengals game .
Cooper did not practice Wednesday, the first full workout the Browns went through on the short week. However, he practiced Thursday, and was given the green light to play Saturday.
"He is going to go," Stefanski said. "Again, it is one of those things you have to get to Saturday and see how he is feeling. I know he is going to be battling through it, but he looked good out there today."
Cooper leads the Browns with 63 catches for 874 yards and seven touchdowns. The last time the Browns played Baltimore, in Week 7, he had three catches for 74 yards, but also drew a critical offensive pass interference flag that negated what would've been a go-ahead touchdown with just over two minutes remaining.
The Browns will be one of the teams participating in the inaugural Greg Knapp Stair Climb to honor the late NFL assistant coach while raising funds and awareness for the dangers of distracted driving. Also participating will be the Atlanta Falcons , New York Jets , San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys .
"Those who knew Knapper, a great, great football coach and a great man," Stefanski said. "I wasn't very close to Knapper, but if you are coaching quarterbacks, in the NFL, he is somebody who is like a god figure in the quarterback circles in how he coached quarterbacks. … A really special man who is gone too soon. We want to raise awareness for his fund and for his memorial."
The challenge started this week, and will continue though the next two weeks of the season. As part of the challenge, coaches and players will climb stairs to help to raise awareness of distracted driving.
Knapp, who coached for 25 years in the NFL, was known for climbing the stadium stairs before every game. He was killed by a distracted driver in July 2021.
The college football world was stunned earlier this week by the death of Mississippi State coach Mike Leach at the age of 61 due to a massive heart attack. That included Browns rookie cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. , who played for Leach his final two seasons in Starkville.
"Just a great man," Emerson told the Beacon Journal. "Just a great guy. He's all about business. When it's time to work, it's time to work. But he also, he was fun, too. He know how to switch it up, but we saddened by his loss."
Leach's on-field reputation centered around the "Air Raid" offense that he, along with Hal Mumme, created. The pass-heavy offense he ran as head coach at Texas Tech, Washington State and Mississippi State revolutionized the sport, and his coaching tree includes the likes of Arizona Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury, USC coach Lincoln Riley and TCU coach Sonny Dykes.
However, it was Leach's off-the-field persona as a larger-than-life, off-the-cuff personality that drew him many fans. His press conferences often devolved into discussions ranging from Halloween candy to school mascots to, even, wedding advice.
"The image he portrays in the media, that's him every day," Emerson said. "He's same person every day."
The first time the Browns played the Ravens, one of their primary concerns in the passing game was tight end Mark Andrews. That was one area in which they excelled in the loss, as the All-Pro was held without a catch on two targets.
Andrews, though, has been a thorn in the side of the Browns during his career, catching 40 passes for 510 yards and seven touchdowns in nine career games. In 2021, he had a combined 15 catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns in two games against Cleveland.
"I think the way they use Andrews is he attacks the middle of the field," pass game coordinator/defensive backs coach Jeff Howard said. "He really stretches the seams and really kind of the area between the second and third level of the defense. They try to get him involved in those play-actions and try to get the second-level players to step up and then they attack the middle of the field with him. He has done it at a high level for them for many years and is always one of the guys who they are trying to get involved.
"The last time, I think we did a good job against him. We kind of knew that and we went out and executed, but every game is a new challenge. We need to do the same thing on Saturday."
Andrews leads the Ravens with 58 catches for 671 yards and five touchdowns this season. He did miss a Week 9 win over the New Orleans Saints due to an injury.
Contact Chris at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com.
On Twitter: @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Ravens QB Tyler Huntley out of protocol, likely to start vs. Browns
