OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Jameis Winston will start at quarterback for the Cleveland Browns against the Ravens this coming Sunday, Oct. 27, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced. Winston takes over for Deshaun Watson, who suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in the Browns’ Week 7 loss to Cincinnati.
The Ravens (5-2) head to Cleveland with a five-game winning streak and a share of the AFC North lead after outlasting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 41-31, this past Monday night.
The Browns (1-6) have lost five straight and will turn to Winston to try to revive an offense that has been dormant this season.
The Browns rank last in the league in total offense, 28th in rushing, 30th in passing and 29th in scoring. They traded top receiver Amari Cooper to the Buffalo Bills last week.
The Ravens, though, have had their own issues. They rank dead last in passing defense, allowing 287.1 yards a game through the air, and 23rd in total defense. Two of their past three opponents, Cincinnati and Tampa Bay, topped 30 points, though the Ravens won both games, in large part because the Ravens’ offense leads the league in total offense, rushing and scoring.
The Ravens also have a banged-up secondary. Cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey (knee), Nate Wiggins (shoulder) and T.J. Tampa (ankle) all sat out the team’s walkthrough practice Wednesday.
After the light workout, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said he was “hopeful” that players who missed practice will be ready by the end of the week.
Arthur Maulet, who was activated from injured reserve this week after his 21-day practice window on IR expired, could be in line to make his 2024 season debut as a slot corner, a position at which he excelled in his first season with the Ravens last season.
Seeing his most extensive action of the season this past week, Winston completed 5 of 11 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown in Cleveland’s 21-14 loss to Cincinnati. Winston was the No. 3 emergency quarterback for that game, but was pressed into service after both Watson and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson (finger) left with injuries.
Winston, 30, last started in 2022, when he was with the New Orleans Saints. In 2019 with Tampa Bay, Winston led the NFL in passing yardage (5,109) and threw 33 touchdowns, but also led the league with 30 interceptions. Winston became the first player in NFL history with 30 touchdowns and 30 interceptions in the same season.
“He’s a great quarterback, very talented quarterback over the years,” Harbaugh said, adding that Winston, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft, “has played a lot of football.”
He has faced the Ravens only once, with Tampa Bay in 2018. In that game, Winston went 13-for-25 for 157 yards with no touchdowns and one interception in a 20-12 Ravens win.
Winston, Harbaugh said, “can throw the thing all over the field for sure.”
With Cooper dealt to Buffalo, the Browns’ top wide receivers are Elijah Moore (22 catches, 136 yards) and Jerry Jeudy (21-266). The Browns also have tight end David Njoku, who has a history of giving the Ravens problems.
The Browns also shook up their offense in another way in the midst of a five-game skid. Stefanski announced that he is giving up offensive play-calling duties, and offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey will have that role beginning this week. Dorsey had served as offensive coordinator for the Buffalo Bills in 2022 and 2023.
“How much that’s going to change … we just don’t know,” Harbaugh said. “We have to get prepared for the things that we think that they’re capable of doing, but mainly we have to get prepared to play our best game on defense.”
NOTEBOOK
SIX MISS WALKTHROUGH WORKOUT: In addition to Humphrey, Wiggins and Tampa, wide receiver Zay Flowers (ankle), running back Rasheen Ali (ankle) and defensive lineman Travis Jones (ankle) all missed practice Wednesday.
Coming off a road Monday night game, the team held a light walkthrough workout in late afternoon and were expected to be back to practicing fully on Thursday.
MITCHELL, ARMOUR-DAVIS BEGIN PRACTICING: Running back Keaton Mitchell (knee) and cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis (hamstring) were on the practice field, beginning a 21-day window after which they must be activated to the 53-man roster or remain on injured reserve for the rest of the season.
Armour-Davis is likely to rejoin the lineup sooner. He played in the first three games, primarily on special teams, before moving to injured reserve before Week 4.
Mitchell had not practiced since suffering a torn ACL in a game at Jacksonville last December. As Mitchell walked onto the Ravens practice field for the first time this year, wide receivers nearby ribbed Mitchell about all the media cameras pointed him.
“We’ll see how he looks out there tomorrow when we’re out there full speed,” Harbaugh said. “He’s been away quite a while, so we want to get him going, get him moving, get him practicing football and get him ready hopefully within the three-week window. That would be the goal for sure.”
NGATA, SUGGS, YANDA MAKE FIRST HALL CUT: Former Ravens Haloti Ngata, Terrell Suggs and Marshal Yanda all made the initial cut to 50 players under consideration for this year’s Pro Football Hall of Fame induction class. A total of 167 modern-era players were under initial consideration by the Hall’s Screening Committee.
The Hall of Fame Selection Committee will further winnow the list to 25 semifinalists, with that group being revealed in about four weeks. Suggs and Yanda are on the ballot for the first time; Ngata is under consideration for the second year.
Other notable candidates with ties to the Ravens include quarterback Steve McNair and wide receivers Steve Smith Sr. and Anquan Boldin.
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