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The Baltimore Ravens don’t face a stiff test in Week 1 to open the 2023 NFL season, but they will have to deal with the matchup while missing a big weapon. The team announced Weel 1 inactives and tight end Mark Andrews will not dressing against the Houston Texans.
Andrews injured his quad in late August and it was unclear where things stood. He was listed as limited on all three practice participation reports this week, and was questionable on the final report. It was thought he would play, but Ian Rapoport and Adam Schefter were reporting it wasn’t going to happen earlier this morning.
Given the state of the Texans, it’s not surprising the Ravens would give Andrews some extra rest. The line has come down, but the Ravens remain 9.5-point favorites ahead of the game. They travel to face the Bengals in Week 2 and the Browns in Week 4, so it makes sense to get arguably their best playmaker in the right spot for some tough matchups this season.
Isaiah Likely will get the start in Andrews’ place. He likely won’t see the same kind of target workload as Andrews, but he offers some low-end TE1 value. He’ll be a popular DFS play on Sunday.