Overview
- Buchanan suffered a non-contact right-knee injury on a punt-coverage play in Week 15 at Paycor Stadium, was carted off, and was ruled out of the game.
- Buchanan, a fourth-round pick who became a Week 2 starter, finishes his rookie year as Baltimore’s No. 2 tackler with 93 stops and earned October’s NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month.
- Harbaugh said the hope is Buchanan returns by next year’s training camp, with coverage noting ACL recoveries are often about nine months.
- Simpson stepped in after the injury and recorded nine tackles against the Bengals, and Harbaugh expressed confidence in his readiness.
- Some analysts have floated more in-box snaps for safety Kyle Hamilton to offset the loss, though Harbaugh indicated Hamilton’s role does not change.