Ravens' David Ojabo to Make Debut Eight Months After Achilles Tear

The outside linebacker was a key cog on Michigan's 2021 Big Ten championship team.
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Ravens outside linebacker David Ojabo will make his NFL debut against the Browns in Cleveland Saturday afternoon, according to a report from ESPN's Jamison Hensley.

Ojabo, an important cog on Michigan's 2021 Big Ten championship team, forced five fumbles last season to lead the conference. Baltimore picked him 45th overall in the 2022 NFL draft.

Born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria and raised in Aberdeen, Scotland, Ojabo —who first took up football in 2017 — had been a projected first round pick before a catastrophic injury at the Wolverines' Pro Day on March 18.

That day, he tore his Achilles and was ruled out for six months, tanking his once-robust stock.

Gradually, Ojabo recovered, debuting in practice on October 12 and participating fully on November 1.

Ojabo's debut comes at a fortuitous time for the Ravens, who at 9-4 are locked in a tie with the Bengals for first in the AFC North. After Cleveland, Ojabo and Baltimore will close the season with games against the Falcons, Steelers, and Cincinnati.


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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .