Isaiah Likely
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Isaiah Likely must beat a Baltimore Ravens All-Pro in one key area to enjoy a breakout 2025 season.
According to NFL insider Ian Rapaport, Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely will not play this Sunday when the Ravens take on the Cleveland Browns. Likely sustained a fracture in his foot during training camp and missed week one.
According to Rapaport, Likely has upped his activity at practice. He was seen doing a workout in front of athletic training staff during Friday’s practice, so it seems like his timetable for return is in a positive place.
Likely’s absence has been mitigated with Mark Andrews still active, but his involvement adds an extra level of complexity to the Ravens offense for opposing teams to deal with. It seems like he is on track to return for week three, though no official statement has been made on when he will actually return to the playing field. The 25-year-old was never officially placed on the injured reserve, which would have sidelined him for a minimum of four weeks, meaning the Ravens expected him to be ready for week three or four.
Likely’s Important Role in Baltimore Offense
Although Mark Andrews is still TE1 on the Ravens depth chart, Likely has become one of Lamar Jackson’s favorite targets in high leverage situation in the last couple of seasons. In 2024, Likely made 42 receptions, a whopping 26 of which were caught for a first down.
The 6-foot-4, 245 pound monster is a safety blanket for Jackson and the entire Ravens offense. When he’s healthy, he and Andrews pose incredibly difficult matchups for defenses to oppose, especially when Jackson is able to scramble and find them on unconventional routes in the middle of the field.
Likely’s numbers have improved in each of his first three seasons in the NFL. The Coastal Carolina product made 42 receptions last season for 477 yards and six touchdowns.
In last year’s playoffs, Likely caught seven passes for 126 yards and a touchdown in two games.
Baltimore Looks to Make a Statement After a Disappointing Finish Week One
The Baltimore Ravens lost a heartbreaker on Sunday Night Football in week one, a 41-40 defeat to the Buffalo Bills. The Baltimore offense was firing on all cylinders against a potent Buffalo defense, with Derrick Henry and Zay Flowers both posting one of the best games of their respective careers.
Now, against a Cleveland defense that is inferior to the Bills, the Ravens will certainly want to put up a huge performance to show that their week one explosion wasn’t a fluke.
The Ravens’ late game defense came under scrutiny after they allowed 22 points in the fourth quarter to Buffalo, giving them plenty of motivation to want to make a statement against the Browns.
Browns’ receiver Jerry Jeudy gave the Ravens secondary even more motivation when he claimed in a midweek press conference that the Baltimore secondary poses “no challenge” to he and his teammates. Though the point spread is at 11.5 in favor of the Ravens implying a blowout, this will be a must watch game between two teams that genuinely dislike each other.
Watch and see to find out if Jeudy will be able to back up his statement or if he’ll be eating his words.