Former Alabama American Mark Ingram dropped out of the NFL on Wednesday and became a free agent, and is no longer a member of the Baltimore Ravens.
But although the Ravens have released the run game with another season on his contract, Baltimore coach John Harbaugh has said it will not be the end of the NFL Series for Ingram.
“He will still play, I guarantee you,” Harbaugh said during his press conference at the end of the season on Wednesday. ‘Mark and I had this conversation. He still has a lot of football left. He will contribute to the National Football League next year and beyond. ”
Ingram has said and written so much that he “looks forward to my next opportunity on his Instagram account on Monday night, because the best is yet to come”.
A Pro Bowler in his first season with Baltimore in 2019, Ingram’s 2020 campaign is hampered by an ankle injury and a period on reserve / COVID-19 that caused him to miss three games. With the rise of rookie JK Dobbins to fulfill Ingram’s role as a 1-2 setback with Gus Edwards, the ten-year-old NFL veteran has played just 18 snaps in the Ravens’ last six games.
Ingram, who was signed as a free agent in 2019 after playing eight seasons for the New Orleans Saints, had a base salary of $ 5 million for the 2021 season. With his release, the Ravens owe him nothing – except thanks.
Harbaugh agreed that Ingram would be a raven for life with Baltimore’s fans after helping the team set a combined record of 25-7 in the regular season over the past two seasons, with success on the field improved by enthusiastic press conferences and some of the best mic-up moments in NFL history.
“Mark was a big part of us,” Harbaugh said. “He’s a very good player, a very physical back. I remember when we last played him when we played the Saints, and you see a guy on tape, and then he ran on our sideline and hit some guys on the sidelines and appeared. And I looked at him, I was like, ‘This guy is physical, man. This guy is a tank. ‘And he had big feet too. I was really impressed with him. Then we found him here, and I saw it up close.
‘But then the other things you talk about – the enthusiasm, the energy, the camaraderie, the dressing room. All those things are just so much fun, and he just brought so much life every day, so the fans are right to feel that way about him, and we feel that way about him too. ‘
After hitting 1018 yards and 10 touchdowns on 202 in 2019 and scoring 26 passes for 247 yards and five TDs, Ingram had 299 yards and two touchdowns on 72 carries and six receptions for 50 yards in 2020.
A three-time Pro Bowler, Ingram, has 7,324 yards and 62 touchdowns on 1,595 rushing attempts and 260 receptions for 1,895 yards and 10 touchdowns in 132 games in the regular season. He also played in seven post-season games with 299 yards and one TD on 71 rushing attempts and 10 receptions for 57 yards.
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ AMarkG1.
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