BALTIMORE — Top Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman will have foot surgery on a Lisfranc injury and miss the rest of the season, coach John Harbaugh said Thursday.
Bateman, who missed the Ravens’ games in Week 5 and Week 6 with a foot sprain, was limited to 13 offensive snaps in last Thursday’s win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Harbaugh said Monday that “there’s a little more there from a strain standpoint,” and that Bateman would miss “a few weeks.” The 2020 first-round draft pick also missed five games as a rookie while recovering from groin surgery.
“It was one of those [situations] where it was up to him,” Harbaugh said. “He and his agent and his family talked it over, and they decided it would be in his best interest to [have surgery], so we support him on that and understand what he’s doing.”
When active, Bateman has been one of the NFL’s most efficient wide receivers this season. He has 15 catches for 285 yards and two touchdowns, and only two players are averaging more yards per catch (19).
“Darkest times of them all for sure,” Bateman wrote on his Instagram account. “[I] love this [expletive] and the work that comes with it. but I can’t question Gods plan and what he has for me. appreciate the love and support. see y’all next year.”
With Bateman sidelined, Devin Duvernay will return to his role as the Ravens’ top wide receiver. He has 24 catches for a career-high 313 yards and career-high three touchdowns.
Bateman, who didn’t have a serious injury history at Minnesota, will enter his third year having played just 18 games in his Ravens career.
“I think Rashod is a great guy,” Harbaugh said. “He really wants to be out there, wants to play, wants to have a career, wants to do well. And that’s not going to change. Different things happen in life. There’s roadblocks sometimes. And sometimes the best way is just to go through it. That’s what he’s doing right now. He’ll come back stronger than ever, and before the story’s written, he’s going to have his day in the sun.”
