The Ravens have chosen Jovaughn Gwyn as their starting center in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts, Head Coach Jesse Minter announced Monday.
The competition to replace Pro Bowler Tyler Linderbaum lasted all summer and took a turn when Danny Pinter suffered a season-ending knee injury in a joint practice with the Minnesota Vikings on Aug. 19.
In the end, Gwyn won the job, at least at the start of the season, and will make the first start of his NFL career in his fourth year.
"Got a lot of confidence in him," Minter said. "This is a guy that when opportunity knocks, are you ready to take advantage? And he's done a really good job."
Gwyn spent his first three seasons with the Atlanta Falcons, where he was coached by now Ravens Offensive Line Coach Dwayne Ledford. That familiarity with the scheme and terminology gave Gwyn an advantage.
After Pinter went down, Gwyn was competing with veteran Ethan Pocic, who has much more experience (97 career starts), but got a later start with the team, as he's working his way back from an Achilles injury last December.
Minter said it's a Week 1 decision. Gwyn will have to play well against a big, veteran Colts front that includes defensive tackles DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart.
"I think we have two really capable centers," Minter said. "Obviously, one (Pocic) has a lot of experience and is probably more proven, but is also coming off of a major injury and I think that at times sort of limited the competition a little bit. So for Week 1, we think this gives us the best opportunity to operate and do the things we need to do."
Nnamdi Madubuike, Teddye Buchanan Have a Chance to Play Week 1
It was already known that defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike and linebacker Teddye Buchanan would play sometime within the first four weeks because they weren't placed on injured reserve to start the season.
On Monday, Minter said he would not rule out any players for Week 1.
"I would say there are some guys coming off of injuries – Teddy and Nnamdi – that we'll kind of track, but overall, I think we've come out of camp pretty healthy overall," Minter said.
Madubuike joined team drills for the first time last week. He hasn't played in a game since Sept. 14 of last season due to a neck injury.
"It's just a process. He's been involved more and more just about every day," Minter said. "He'll be involved in practice this week, he'll be in team, he'll be doing things — and we'll kind of see how it shakes out as we get closer to see if it's even possible for Week 1."
Tyler Loop Hasn't Missed a Kick Since Jake Moody's Arrival
Tyler Loop has responded to competition the way the Ravens hoped he would since they signed veteran Jake Moody to the practice squad last week.
After Loop missed three of his eight field-goal attempts in three preseason games, Minter said Loop hasn't been off-target since Moody arrived.
"To Tyler's credit, he's responded really well to bringing somebody in at his position — just like anybody would when you bring a guy in at their spot," Minter said. "Normally it brings out the best when you've got the right type of guy, and I don't think he's missed a kick since we brought Jake in."
Minter also added that Moody has "done really well." Just like at center, the Ravens will have an ongoing evaluation at kicker.
"It's about protecting the team and the long-term outlook. I have a lot of confidence in Tyler going into this first game," Minter said.
"And after that — not to play into the hypothetical — but every position, really other than a few super established guys, is a week-to-week thing. It's about going out there this week and producing and doing your job. I have a lot of confidence he'll do that. But again, it's about having things available just in case."
Colts' Leading Receiver Set to Play in Opener
Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce underwent ankle surgery shortly after inking a four-year, $114 million contract in March.
While that slowed down his summer, the speedster is set to play in Sunday's opener in Indianapolis, per Head Coach Shane Steichen.
Pierce was one of 19 wide receivers to top 1,000 yards last season. He has led the league in yards per catch each of the past two seasons, with an average of 21.8 yards over that span. He's a big-play threat who the Ravens secondary won't want to lose deep down the field.
Colts quarterback Daniel Jones will also make his return after last season ended with a torn right Achilles on Dec. 7. The Colts won eight of their first 10 games with Jones under center, and Minter expects him to start this season strong.
"It doesn't seem like it takes as long as it used to [to come back] with the science and the way these guys can recover," Minter said. "I feel like we'll probably see the best version of Daniel, healthy coming out of camp and not having played. I would imagine we'll get a pretty good version of Daniel Jones."
