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He still isn't willing to declare himself ready to play on Sunday against the Dolphins, but it sure looks like Donte' Stallworth will be making his 2010 debut at M&T Bank Stadium this weekend.
The wide receiver, who is coming off a broken foot that he suffered during the Ravens' third preseason game, had a full week of practice, and barring any setbacks in the next 24 hours, he should be good to go tomorrow.
"It felt pretty good," Stallworth said after yesterday's practice. "I know it's going to be sore. It's probably going to be sore for the rest of the season. I'm still going to be a gametime decision, because, hopefully it doesn't, but it could get sore on me as tonight comes around, Friday, Saturday. But I'm doing my best to take care of it, and I'm hoping that Sunday comes around and I'm feeling pretty good and I'm ready to go."
Stallworth said he still has some pain and soreness in the foot, but said he doesn't think it's much more than many NFL players are feeling at this point in the season.
"I can feel it when I'm running, and I really feel it afterwards, but if I'm out there and I can run around and be effective and [I'm] feeling pretty good and getting open, then I guess that's what matters most," Stallworth said. "No one is going to be 100 percent when you're playing in the NFL, any part of the season, even the first game of the season.
"So, I'm not really looking to be 100 percent, I'm just looking to make sure that I can go out there and be effective and run some good routes and get open."
If he is able to play tomorrow, it will mark the first regular season game action that Stallworth has seen since December of 2008.
The 29-year-old was suspended for the entire 2009 season after pleading guilty to vehicular manslaughter, and the broken foot obviously derailed his attempts to get back on the field at the start of this season.
Asked how he'll feel if he's able to put on a jersey and play tomorrow, Stallworth cracked a big smile.
"I can't say," he says. "When we had our first practice in the stadium over at M&T during training camp, I had no idea I was going to feel the way I did. It was great. We had like 19,000 fans out there, and the rush felt like a gameday. So, it'll be interesting to see how it goes. I can't really say right now, but it'll be a good feeling. It'll be a good feeling."
Stallworth has been worked into the gameplan this week during practices, and the Ravens have some packages in place to utilize his speed, which is a factor that none of the team's top three wide receivers can match.
"It'll be interesting," Stallworth said of his role this Sunday. "Obviously we've had the bye week to add a few more plays and a few more things, like every team does during the bye week. But it'll be interesting to see how everything pans out. Like I said, hopefully I'm feeling good and good enough to go as much as they need me to go."
