OWINGS MILLS — The Ravens will rely on their depth and have put 10 offensive linemen on the final 53-man roster.
That should give coach John Harbaugh the flexibility to rotate players and keep some of the veterans — such as left tackle Ronnie Stanley and the versatile Pat Mekari — fresh for later in the season.
The Ravens also could scour the waiver wire and evaluate available free agents to add depth in the coming days.
Harbaugh evaluated players throughout training camp on the offensive line, which has only two starters — Stanley and center Tyler Linderbaum — returning from last season. Harbaugh said he has decided on the starting lineup, but he does not plan to reveal it until the Ravens play the Kansas City Chiefs in the NFL opener on September 5th.
“I’m not going to make any announcements on any starting announcements going into the Chiefs game,” Harbaugh said. “What would be the point? We’ll just go play the game.”
In addition to Stanley and Linderbaum, the offensive linemen are: guard Andrew Vorhees, guard Daniel Faalele, rookie tackle Roger Rosengarten, guard/center/tackle Patrick Mekari, guard/center Ben Cleveland, tackle/guard Josh Jones, guard/tackle Sala Aumavae-Laulu and rookie center Nick Samac.
The Ravens’ likely starting lineup against the Chiefs will be Stanley at left tackle, Vorhees at left guard and Faalele at right guard. Linderbaum missed almost a month of training camp with a neck injury, but Harbaugh deemed him healthy to play against Kansas City. Rosengarten and Mekari are vying for the starting job at right tackle. Mekari could start the opener against the Chiefs and then move into a more versatile role as a backup for all five positions on the offensive line, while Rosengarten gradually takes over.
Aumavae-Laulu made the team last year but appeared to be on the bubble. He beat out Tashawn Manning for the spot.
The Ravens can expect high pressure from the Chiefs to test the new starters on the offensive line.
Quarterback Lamar Jackson has confidence in the players in front of him.
“My guys have been coming along very well,” Jackson said. “They’re young guys, and this is a very young group. I think it is probably the youngest group I’ve been a part of since I’ve been in the league, and the guys are coming along well. We got Ronnie at tackle, we got Tyler, and those guys that are leaders of the line right now; and we [are] just going to keep stacking and keep getting better.”
