The Baltimore Ravens received another blow to their hopes of defending their Superbowl Championship today as star tight-end Dennis Pitta dislocated his hip in practice and had to undergo surgery to repair the issue. There is no definitive timetable for Pitta’s return at this point, but multiple media reports indicate that he might be lost for the entire season.
Pitta was injured during 7 on 7 drills today. He collided with with safety James Ihedigbo, as he was trying to catch a Joe Flacco pass in the back of the end zone. Pitta lay on the field for several minutes in obvious agony before he was carted off.
“Dennis has a dislocated hip. We’ll have to take a look at that and see exactly what it is,” coach John Harbaugh said after practice. “It’s a serious injury. He is going to be out for a while. He will not be in the Denver game, and we’ll just have to play it from there to see how long it goes.”
Pitta recently signed his 1 year franchise tender with the Ravens. He can become a free agent at the end of this season.
Pitta, 28, was the Ravens fourth round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft. He is entering his fourth season with the club. Last year Pitta tied with Ray Rice as the Ravens second leading pass catcher as each had 61 pass receptions. Pitta was good 669 yards receiving and seven touchdowns last season. In the playoffs, Pitta had 14 catches for 163 yards and three scores. The Ravens have already lost their leading pass catcher, trading Anquan Boldin to the San Francisco 49ers this offseason. This is major production that they will need to replace.
“Obviously, he was a very, very productive guy for us,” Ravens offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell said of Pitta. “He made a lot of big plays last year. We’ll see what happens. But somebody is going to have to step up. We do have some capable guys all across the flanks. We do have some weapons. We’re just going to have to have some guys make some plays for us.”
The Ravens can only hope that they will have Pitta back at some point this season, but like Jeremy Maclin of the Eagles, the situation looks grim. The depleted recieving corps will certainly put even more pressure on Joe Flacco, who became one of the highest paid QBs in the NFL this off-season.
Update: Raven Coach John Harbaugh has confirmed that the injury will wipe out Pitta’s 2013 season. “Dennis is out for the year,” Harbaugh said, via Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. “It’s the type of thing he’s not going to be able to come back from this year. There’s enough damage in there.”
In response to the injury the Ravens have added another tight end to their roster, signing veteran Visanthe Shiancoe to a one-year deal
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