Kyle Van Noy said on his podacst with Gerald McCoy that he expects Zay Flowers to play on Saturday against the Steelers.
Ever since Zay Flowers went down grabbing his right knee in Week 18, fans and pundits alike have been locked in on his status for Saturday’s Wild Card matchup with the Steelers. John Harbaugh said his star reciever is “day-to-day” but insisted that the injury – believed to be a knee sprain, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport – is not season-ending.
Flowers is the Ravens’ first-ever wide receiver selected to the Pro Bowl with 1,059 receiving yards this season. He has been a huge part of the Ravens’ success on offense; while the Ravens have moved the ball without Flowers on the field, it will still be difficult to replace his unique skill set.
Zay Flowers spotted walking in the locker room with a minor brace on his knee.
I also can confirm he did cut off the locks.
— Kyle Phoenix (@KylePBarber) January 7, 2025
Flowers didn’t practice on Tuesday and was seen wearing a brace on his knee in the locker room. However, one of his teammates is confident that the second-year wideout will take the field on Saturday. Kyle Van Noy said the following on his podcast with ex-NFL DT Gerald McCoy:
Zay got a little banged up but knowing Zay, he’s played when he hasn’t practiced, he’s a tough little sucker. He’s from Broward County too, you know how those Broward County kids, they for real over there down in Florida, they love football and he’s gonna do everything he can to play. I’m going into it expecting to see him on [Saturday], just knowing who he is as a person and him as his competitive nature. We’ll see but I’m going in knowing I got him in the game.
This might seem like wishful thinking or positive manifestation by a teammate, but Van Noy has some truth on his side. Flowers has never missed a college or NFL game due to injury in his career, despite appearing on the injury report multiple times this season. In Week 8, Flowers missed two practices and was limited in a third, but but overcame his questionable designation for seven catches and 114 yards. In Week 17, he picked up an injury mid-week but still played 41 snaps on Christmas Day.
Even without Flowers, the Ravens should have no reason to lose to the Steelers on Saturday, but they will have to contend with Pittsburgh’s frequent man coverage without one of their best separators. During what is expected to be a cold game where Derrick Henry should get a large workload, the Steelers will likely load the box and dare the Ravens to throw over the top against a man-to-man defense. Flowers and Bateman are the team’s two best receivers at beat man coverage, so missing even one will impact how the Ravens offense can go, even with talented tight ends like Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely.
You can listen to the McCoy and Van Noy podcast episode here.