Ravens put Ethan Pocic, Jovaughn Gwyn on IR

Everyone saw this coming after Dallas. Saturday made it official, and it lands on both centers at once.

Adam Schefter

@AdamSchefter

Ravens placed two centers, Jovaughn Gwyn and Ethan Pocic, on Injured Reserve.

Both players got hurt in the 34-31 win over the Cowboys. Gwyn, who won the starting job in training camp, was carted off with what was first called an ankle injury and turned out to be a fractured fibula. Reports say he could miss 2-3 months. Pocic came in for him and then took a helmet to the knee late in the 4th quarter. That left first-round rookie guard Vega Ioane snapping the ball on the drive that won the game.

Jeff Zrebiec

@jeffzrebiec

Ahead of Sunday's game versus Titans, Ravens use a practice squad elevation on G Kyle Hergel, who signed w/team Wednesday. Ravens place centers Jovaughn Gwyn (fibula) and Ethan Pocic (knee) on I.R.

Hergel signed Wednesday and gets elevated for Sunday because the Ravens are completely out of centers. They have no center on the practice squad, and former backup Corey Bullock plays for Carolina now. This is the 3rd center they've lost this year. Danny Pinter, the projected starter, tore his patellar tendon in camp, and that was after Tyler Linderbaum, a 3-time Pro Bowler, left for the Raiders in free agency. Pocic was signed on July 23 as veteran insurance while coming back from a torn Achilles he suffered last December. Insurance only works if it doesn't get hurt too.

So it's Ioane's job now. The Ravens are moving him from right guard to center for the Titans. He'll be making his first NFL start at a position he only played for the final drives in Dallas. Jesse Minter had already called both injuries long-term, and going on IR means Pocic and Gwyn miss at least 4 games no matter what.

Next comes the roster math, which Zrebiec laid out right after the moves.

Jeff Zrebiec

@jeffzrebiec

With only 51 players on the 53-man roster and the one PS elevation, the Ravens will need 4 inactives Sunday. Emergency No. 3 QB Joe Fagnano will be one, so technically, they'll only need 3.

Jeff Zrebiec@jeffzrebiec

Ahead of Sunday's game versus Titans, Ravens use a practice squad elevation on G Kyle Hergel, who signed w/team Wednesday. Ravens place centers Jovaughn Gwyn (fibula) and Ethan Pocic (knee) on I.R.

Teams can dress 48, and Baltimore has 51 on the roster plus 1 elevation, so 4 players sit. Emergency 3rd QB Joe Fagnano takes one of those spots without counting against the limit. Trey Hendrickson, who's out after a finger procedure, takes another. That leaves Baltimore choosing only 2 healthy scratches. It's a thin roster on gameday.

What to watch Sunday: snaps. A rookie guard playing center for the first time, with a practice-squad guard who signed Wednesday as the backup, is where things can go wrong fast. If the Titans have any interior pass rush, they'll test it right away. If Ioane gets through a full game cleanly, the Ravens might have found their center by accident.