Zay Flowers is set to play in Week 1 after his hamstring issue no longer landed him on the Ravens’ injury report for Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts.
That’s a major boost for Baltimore, which is leaning on Flowers as the No. 1 receiver in a revamped offense. The Ravens signed him to a major extension in the offseason, and after a brief scare earlier this month, he was able to practice in full during the buildup to the opener.
Flowers gives Lamar Jackson a reliable target right away, and the Ravens will need him if they’re going to live up to the expectations around them. Baltimore has the second-best odds to win the Super Bowl at DraftKings, and the pressure is on several players to take a step forward in 2026.
The numbers from last season back up why Flowers matters so much. In 2025, he played all 17 games and hauled in 86 of 118 targets for 1,211 yards and five touchdowns. He finished with four scores over the final four weeks of the regular season, and that touchdown total is one he’ll be looking to push higher in 2026.
Sunday’s matchup also sets up well for him from a betting standpoint. The Colts gave up the second-most passing yards in the NFL in 2025, with only Dallas allowing more, and they finished 19th in EPA/Pass. Sauce Gardner is now in the fold for a full season in Indianapolis, but this still looks like a secondary Jackson, Flowers and the rest of the Ravens can attack.
Flowers also brings a sturdy receiving floor. He averaged more than 71 receiving yards per game last season and topped 68 yards in 10 of his 17 games. He also reached at least 63 receiving yards in 12 contests, which makes him an appealing prop option for this opener.
Baltimore could also have more passes funneled toward Flowers with Isaiah Likely out of the picture. In 2025, Flowers averaged nearly seven targets per game and caught 86 passes even with Jackson missing time because of injuries.
For Week 1, the case is straightforward: Flowers is healthy, the matchup is there, and he looks like a strong play against Indianapolis.
In Other News...
Ravens Leave Week 1 Win With A Concern Fans Can't Ignore
Baltimores Week 1 win over the Colts came with a few reasons to feel uneasy, even after the final score was in hand. Zay Flowers was electric before leaving with a career-high 150 receiving yards and a touchdown, but he was not the only Raven to exit with a problem. Ja'Kobi Lane went out with a wrist injury, and T.J. Tampa left with a knee injury, with none of the three able to return.
Coach Jesse Minter did not have immediate updates afterward, leaving the team to sort through what those absences might mean going forward. The silver lining was that veterans Chris Moore and Carl Jones, both elevated from the practice squad, stepped in to help on offense and special teams, but Baltimore knows depth is only part of the concern when key contributors are suddenly unavailable. [Read more 🡒]
Ravens Suddenly Have A WR Rotation Problem They Didnt Expect
JaKobi Lanes first week in Baltimore had already started to matter. The rookie wide receiver had worked his way into the Ravens rotation as the WR3 and flashed enough promise to make the staff think he could be part of the early-season passing plan before a wrist injury cut the momentum short in Week 1. The initial read on the injury points to a fractured wrist, and the expected recovery timeline leaves the Ravens with an immediate depth question at a spot they could not really afford to lose.
Rashod Bateman, Devontez Walker and Chris Moore are the names now positioned to absorb more of the workload, and the shift comes with some pressure attached. Baltimore was already trying to sort out how its receiver group would function around a young, unproven piece like Lane, and his absence forces those plans to move faster than expected. The next stretch will say plenty about whether the Ravens can keep the passing game on schedule while Lane is out, or whether the early uncertainty at receiver becomes a real issue. [Read more 🡒]
Trey Hendricksons Ravens Debut Showed What This Defense Might Become
Trey Hendrickson didnt get the sack in his Ravens debut, but he was all over the Colts backfield in a way that should have Baltimore paying close attention. He finished with five pressures and five hurries, a steady stream of disruption that helped the defense keep the heat on and played a real part in the win. For a unit trying to get its footing without some key pieces, it was the kind of debut that hinted at a broader answer.
Baltimore leaned into a mix of nickel and dime looks to make sure Hendrickson could attack in different ways, and that flexibility may end up being just as important as the individual numbers. The production was there even without the sack column filling up, and it raised the kind of question defensive coaches love to have: what does this pass rush look like once the pieces around him are fully in place? [Read more 🡒]