What’s Going on with Ravens’ Star DT?
There is no question that injuries are a part of football. While many may say their team, real or fantasy football, would benefit from an opposing player's injury, we are still talking about another human life. When Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL, some cheered that the Chiefs would miss the playoffs, but he is set to return in 2026. Anyone who faced the Packers after Micah Parsons tore his ACL didn’t have to gameplan for one of the best edge rushers in the entire NFL, resulting in the Packers losing five straight games, including their Wild Card matchup against their division rival Chicago Bears. While these players had serious injuries and opposing teams may have sighed in relief, it is a part of football, but they will be back. However, there are some questions and concerns when it comes to a different part of the body: the head and/or neck.
Early in the 2025 Week Three practice week, the Ravens announced that star defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike would miss the game against the Lions after recording a sack in each of the first two games of the season. John Harbaugh, who was the head coach at the time, said there was no specific play or thing that caused it, but symptoms surfaced, and the team was looking into it. A week later, before the game in Kansas City, Harbaugh would rule Madubuike out again, but this time, expressing concern. On the Saturday before the Chiefs' game, Madubuike was placed on IR, holding him out for at least four weeks. Then, on that Monday, Harbaugh announced that Madubuike’s season was over. Harbaugh was asked multiple times throughout the next few weeks about whether the injury was career-threatening, but said that there were medical laws like HIPAA that prevented him from addressing the situation, giving Nnamdi the full responsibility of addressing the media.
"A lot of that is things he needs to address with you guys in his time," Harbaugh said. "I really can't speak for him, wouldn't want to. Those are questions that would be best answered by him going forward." General manager Eric DeCosta was asked in the press conference after the season ended about a multitude of topics. When asked about the Madubuike situation, DeCosta said, "I can't really discuss that, obviously. I will say, not having Nnamdi this year was a horrible situation for our team. I think it affected us in different ways… Still working through a lot of his different ideas and things, so that we can hopefully get more and more information about his situation, but more than that, I couldn't talk about the specifics of him and his situation."
In terms of fans and media, no one has really seen or heard any information from Nnamdi himself, and it is raising more and more concerns each passing week for many reasons. The first reason is obviously the overall health of Madubuike. Over the last few years, the NFL has tightened up the safety precautions for head and neck injuries, understanding that CTE is a real problem not just in NFL players, but in anyone who suffers repeated trauma to the head/neck area. While he was born with it, former Ravens LB turned Ravens DC, Zach Orr, had his football career cut short due to a congenital neck/spine condition. Additionally, former Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch retired for medical reasons after having multiple neck injuries over his six-year career. Fans want Nnamdi to play, but if continuing to play risks his own life or causes further injury, it may be time to hang them up.
Secondly, Nnamdi Madubuike recently signed a huge extension with the Ravens. After having a career year in 2023, Madubuike recorded 13 sacks, earning his first career Pro Bowl, but he almost tested free agency. He was franchise tagged and extended three days later to a four-year $98 million deal. Projected by OverTheCap.com for 2026 and 2027, Madubuike’s cap hits are $30.97 million and $31.49 million, respectively, which is about 10.1% of the yearly cap hit. There would be a lot of dead money on either side of a June 1st, 2026, release. A release would financially hinder the Ravens, and the franchise would need to find a replacement for a two-time Pro Bowler who has just hit his stride in the big leagues. There shouldn’t even be a thought of releasing Madubuike on the chance he could come back, the impact he had on the 2023 and 2024 Ravens defense, and because of the noticeable absence in 2025. It is simply not plausible.
There are two ways this can play out. The first is that Madubuike fully recovers and is cleared for football, ready to return to his starting spot on the defensive line. The second is that Madubuike is not cleared from whatever the neck injury is, and is forced to retire. The contract situation of a player forced to medically retire is very wishy-washy, but generally, the guarantees are guaranteed. Fans and media members are equally in the dark about the entire Madubuike situation and wish two things: a speedy but effective recovery to 100%, and that Nnamdi can get back on the field in the purple and black. The health of a player always comes first, and whichever choice Nnamdi makes, Baltimore will have to accept it.
