Baltimore Ravens rookie cornerback Bilhal Kone has a long year coming. He unfortunately went down with a major knee injury in the team’s preseason debut against the Indianapolis Colts. The injury happened late in the first quarter while Kone was covering Colts wide receiver Ashton Dulin on special teams.
Kone, a sixth-round pick from Western Michigan, tore an unspecified ligament in his left knee. This tragic accident occurred as he was trying to break up an uncompleted passing play in the end-zone. Sensitive to another injury scare, Ravens athletic trainers quickly took to the field, putting his leg into an air cast before wheeling him off the field on a cart.
As a promising undrafted free agent, Kone had been battling for one of the last cornerback spots on the Ravens roster. He proved he could do it at Western Michigan. Last year, he posted nine passes broken up to lead the team, with 70 tackles and one interception.
The team was riding high off a resounding win against the undefeated Colts, 24-16. Coach John Harbaugh decided that Kone should take the entire season off due to the severity of his injury.
“Even seeing him in the locker room just now is really hard. Very hard,” – John Harbaugh
During this difficult time, Kone knew that Harbaugh had his back and that he would offer unconditional support. To him he said, You’re still an important piece of this team.
“But I told him the sun will come up tomorrow. You’ll get this taken care of. You’ll be rehabbing, you’re part of our team, and you’ll be back. So it’s just not on the time that you hope for,” – John Harbaugh
The loss of Kone is brutal blow both to him and the Ravens as they continue to make preparations for the upcoming season. His experience and potential contributions on the defensive end will be sorely missed as the team comes to terms with his unexpected absence.
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