Baltimore Ravens cornerback Corey Ivy appeared lost for the season after he suffered a lacerated kidney during a 13-3 loss at Denver Oct. 9.
His injury appeared so severe that the Ravens prematurely landed on their return flight in Pittsburgh so he could receive emergency medical attention. Doctors at Pittsburgh?s Presbyterian Hospital told him he probably wouldn?t play again this season.
But Ivy returned two weeks ago in the Ravens? come-from-behind win in Tennessee and on Sunday, he had arguably his best game of the season in a 27-0 shutout of the Steelers. He finished with two tackles, including a sack of Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger with 4:58 left in the third quarter that led to a forced fumble. Linebacker Adalius Thomas recovered it and ran 57 yards for a touchdown and a 24-0 lead. Ivy also nabbed an interception with 6:31 left in the game that led to a 40-yard Matt Stover field goal for the final score of the game.
“I?m just grateful to be back out there playing the sport that I love,” Ivy said. “God healed me real fast. It?s kind of scary at first, but I was able to overcome that. I?m healthy now, thanks to the good doctors in Pittsburgh and Baltimore. I?m really grateful to be back out there.”
Thomas said Ivy is a “warrior” and the type of player that is perfect for the Ravens? style of defensive play.
“He comes every day to play,” Thomas said. “He has a pit-bull mentality, and he fits right into our defense. Anything that you ask him to do, he?s right there to do it.”
Ravens head coach Brian Billick shared Thomas? assessment of Ivy, who signed with Baltimore over the offseason as a free agent from the St. Louis Rams.
“I don?t know that I?ve ever been around a tougher player than Corey Ivy,” Billick said.
Since entering the NFL in 1999 out of Oklahoma, Ivy is used to adversity. Over his first three seasons, he played sparingly and got waived by New England, Cleveland and Tampa Bay.
However, Tampa Bay re-signed Ivy, who subsequently played in all 16 games for the Buccaneers in 2002. He played a crucial role on special teams in helping lead the team to a victory in Super Bowl XXXVII that year. He appeared in every game the following three seasons and the first five games this year before getting hurt in Denver.
Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan said Ivy has surpassed his expectations of the 5-foot-9, 188-pounder, whom Ryan coached in college when he was the defensive coordinator at Oklahoma.
“He?s just a tough little guy,” Ryan said. “He?s one of the toughest cats in the league. He?s a bulldog out there. He was challenged up. He had to cover Hines Ward a few times, and he stepped up to the challenge. We expect that out of Corey. He?s just a tough guy.”
