Ravens activating Mark Andrews for AFC title game vs. Chiefs،
OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews was activated from injured reserve Friday, providing a major boost to quarterback Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens ahead of the NFL championship game. AFC on Sunday.
“I’m excited,” Andrews said. I love playing football. I love the Ravens. I love the city. I'm going to give them everything I have.”
When Andrews injured his left ankle in a 34-29 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Nov. 16, the initial fear was that he would miss the rest of the season. But Andrews spent six hours a day rehabbing a cracked fibula and ligament damage at the Ravens' Under Armor Performance Center and spent his nights in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber to speed his recovery.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh said it took “an incredible amount of toughness” for Andrews to put himself in position to play 73 days after the serious injury.
“I mean the physical pain that he went through…I saw it in the training room,” Harbaugh said. “[It’s a] very painful injury. A very painful rehabilitation.”
Andrews felt like he had a chance to play when he started practicing two weeks ago. He didn't estimate how many snaps he would play against the Kansas City Chiefs.
“I feel good,” Andrews said. “I’m going to help this team in any way I can and whatever they ask me to do.”
Since Andrews and Jackson were drafted by Baltimore in 2018, Andrews has become Jackson's favorite target. Andrews totaled more receptions (287), receiving yards (3,739) and touchdown passes (33) from Jackson than any other player.
Even though Andrews missed the final six games of the regular season, he still leads Baltimore with six red zone touchdowns. Jackson called Andrews earlier this week his “bread and butter.
“It means a lot to all of us,” Jackson said of Andrews’ return. “What that means to me is I have another security blanket.”
Andrews, 28, a three-time Pro Bowl player, was injured during the first practice of Week 11 during a controversial hip tackle by Bengals linebacker Logan Wilson. It was quickly brought to his attention that former wide receiver Terrell Owens had suffered a similar injury in 2005. With the help of a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, Owens returned seven weeks later to play in the Super Bowl.
Andrews borrowed a hyperbaric chamber from his girlfriend's mother and moved it into her house. Now he and Jackson are one win away from reaching their first Super Bowl.
“We came into the league together in 2018 at the same time,” Andrews said. “We always talked about unfinished business. This is part of that business.”
