The Ravens announced Friday that after missing last week, Haloti Ngata will play Sunday vs. the Steelers. (US Presswire) |
Ravens DT Haloti Ngata is set to play against Pittsburgh this week after missing Week 10's game against Oakland.
Ngata was a limited participant in practice for all three days this week. He's been dealing with a nagging shoulder issue and a sprained MCL. Ngata said resting last week helped him recover enough to be able to go against Pittsburgh.
"It helped a lot," Ngata said. "I didn't re-tweak (the injuries) or anything and I feel good."
Ngata, listed as probable for Sunday's game against the Steelers, said the decision to rest last week during Baltimore's 55-20 win over Oakland came from both himself and coach John Harbaugh.
"It was a choice that me and Coach decided to do," Ngata said. "If we started losing I probably would have played, but they never caught up or put us any situation where I needed to be out there."
However, there's more than a 50 percent chance Ngata and the Ravens will be without starting DE Pernell McPhee, who's listed as doubtful for Sunday's game. After saying he was close to 100 percent before Thursday's practice, McPhee, who has knee and thigh injuries, sat out of Friday's session.
Listed as questionable for Sunday are NT Terrence Cody (arm) and S Christian Thompson (thigh). Joining Ngata on the probable list are S Sean Considine (knee/chest), LB Dannell Ellerbe (finger), S Bernard Pollard (chest), S Ed Reed (shoulder/leg/neck), RB Ray Rice (toe), WR Torrey Smith (chest), OLB Terrell Suggs (Achilles), OLB Courtney Upshaw (shoulder), LG Bobbie Williams (ankle) and LG Marshal Yanda (ankle).
Family matters: With 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh undergoing a minor heart procedure on Thursday, John Harbaugh said he's spoken with his brother and that he's feeling better.
"He's had it before," the Ravens coach said. "I guess it's a little bit more advanced now with his heart rate and things like that, so it should correct that. He's back at work today from what I understand."
Ellerbe 1, Bynes 0: Throughout this past week, Ravens LB Josh Bynes, who played college football at Auburn, has been donning a red Georgia hat. The reason why is that he lost a friendly wager from teammate LB Dannell Ellerbe, who played at Georgia.
Last week, Georgia won the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry 38-0. As a result, Bynes has been sporting the colors of one of Auburn's oldest foes. When asked about it, Bynes shook his head and admitted defeat.
Ellerbe, on the other hand, played down the bet, saying Bynes just wanted to switch collegiate allegiances.
"He just likes Georgia deep down inside," Ellerbe joked. "He just asked me to bring a hat so I let him wear it."
Follow Ravens reporter Jason Butt on Twitter: @CBSRavens and @JasonButtCBS.