Ravens S Hamilton exits late in first half with ankle injury

BALTIMORE (AP) — Baltimore safety Kyle Hamilton sprained his right ankle late in the first half Thursday night against Cincinnati, leaving an already struggling secondary without its best player.

Coach John Harbaugh was optimistic about the injury after Baltimore's 35-34 victory.

“It's not a serious ankle (injury),” Harbaugh said. “I don't know how long it will be.”

The All-Pro defensive back left the game and headed into the tunnel, and he was ruled out during the third quarter.

The initial sight of Hamilton going down with an apparent non-contact injury looked like it could be devastating to a struggling Baltimore defense, but he was ultimately able to walk on his own.

It was tied at 7 when Hamilton exited, and Cincinnati scored a touchdown to take the lead on that drive. On their first defensive play of the second half, the Ravens allowed a 67-yard catch-and-run for a TD by Ja'Marr Chase, who has consistently given Baltimore fits. Chase ended up with 11 catches for 264 yards, including three second-half touchdowns.

The Ravens did get a decent amount of pressure on Joe Burrow. Nnamdi Madubuike had three sacks. Burrow still threw for 428 yards and four TDs. He threw nine touchdown passes in two games against Baltimore this season, but the Ravens managed to win both.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl