BALTIMORE – Brandon Meriweather does not believe a hard hit he delivered in the second quarter of the Washington Redskins’ 23-17 preseason loss to the Baltimore Ravens should have drawn a penalty flag, and he does not know if he will face any additional repercussions from the league.
Meriweather, the Redskins’ starting strong safety, appeared to deliver a helmet-to-helmet hit on wide receiver Torrey Smith with 12:16 left until halftime. Smith did not catch the pass from quarterback Joe Flacco, who was trying to convert a third-and-4 from the Ravens’ 49-yard line.
“I’m not the one who wrote the book on penalties,” Meriweather said. “I aimed at the middle of his numbers. I went in. I kind of seen the pass go. I went in and aimed low and I hit him. I leaned in with my shoulder and did everything that my coaches taught me to do, and I got the flag.”
Meriweather, who was fined $42,000 last season and then later suspended for a game after repeated helmet-to-helmet hits, has insisted he is trying to change his technique when it comes to tackling.
The strong safety also delivered what appeared to be a facemask-to-facemask hit on Ravens running back Bernard Pierce earlier in the game. Pierce left the game and was evaluated for a concussion, though Ravens coach John Harbaugh did not disclose the results of that test afterward.
“I’m trying to do what the NFL has me [doing] after going through this offseason – going down and working on the things that I need to work on, and the first chance I get, the first test I get, it seems like I failed,” Meriweather said.
He was originally suspended for two games midway through last season, though he had that suspension reduced to one game following an appeal.
“I think they’ve been keeping a close eye on me the last couple years – not just this year,” Meriweather said, referring to the NFL. “But at the same time, I’m gonna continue to work on my game. I’m gonna continue to try to get lower and I’m gonna continue to try to do things the way they want me to do.”
Moses Injures Knee
Rookie offensive tackle Morgan Moses sustained a sprained MCL in his right knee late in the third quarter and did not return to the game.
Moses, who worked at right tackle for the first time during a preseason game, fell to the turf as the Redskins faced third-and-8 from Baltimore’s 34-yard line with 2:35 remaining in the quarter. He was helped off the field by athletic trainers and taken to the locker room for further examination soon thereafter.
A third-round draft pick in May, Moses, from Virginia, was praised by Gruden on Thursday for his performance in the first two preseason games.
“I think he has enough athleticism to be a very, very good tackle in this league for a long time,” Gruden said. “It’s just a matter of getting him comfortable – left side, right side – with all the calls and changes in protection. He’s going to be fine because he’s a long, big-bodied kid and he works very hard at it.”
Outside linebacker Brian Orakpo injured his right ankle in the first quarter when Ravens left tackle Eugene Monroe hit him with a cut block, while cornerback Chase Minnifield also sustained a hamstring injury in the third quarter that forced him from the game.
Running back Chris Thompson (ankle), inside linebacker Darryl Sharpton (high right ankle sprain) and cornerback Tracy Porter (hamstring strain) did not dress because of injury. Quarterback Colt McCoy and outside linebacker Adrian Robinson were among those who did not play.
Redd Gets Reps
Undrafted running back Silas Redd continued to get carries ahead of sixth-round draft pick Lache Seastrunk. Redd, who entered late in the third quarter, had 14 yards on six attempts. Seastrunk, who returned to the team Saturday after missing two days of practice following the death of his grandmother, did not have a carry. … Chris Chester, who has played exclusively at right guard since arriving in Washington before the 2011 season, played the fifth series – and six snaps – at center. “Kind of an insurance policy,” Chester said. Gruden said he wanted to see if Chester could be the team’s backup center. … Ravens nose tackle Haloti Ngata kicked Redskins left guard Shawn Lauvao at the end of Washington’s first play from scrimmage – a 19-yard run by Alfred Morris. “Kind of a heat of the moment thing,” Ngata said. “I was just trying to protect my own player.” … The Redskins’ loss snapped an eight-game preseason winning streak. Their last preseason loss was Aug. 18, 2012 at Chicago. … Inside linebacker Akeem Jordan and strong safety Trenton Robinson each played on the first-team kickoff coverage and kickoff return units, while outside linebacker Everette Brown was on the first-team field goal block unit.
• Zac Boyer can be reached at zboyer@washingtontimes.com.
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