Ravens’ Reed able to play well despite injury

BALTIMORE — In the wake of missing the entire preseason with a nerve impingement, Pro Bowl free safety Ed Reed made a last-minute decision to test out his neck and left shoulder Sunday and started for the Baltimore Ravens without incident.

Reed didn’t aggravate the injury during the Ravens’ 17-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals at M&T Bank Stadium. He recorded three tackles, deflecting one pass to cornerback Chris McAlister for an interception.

Reed said he’s not in danger by continuing to play. He took precautions against the Bengals by only doling out a few hits and generally led with his right shoulder after not having any contact during the preseason.

"They told me that there’s not any catastrophic risk, but you’re always at risk playing football," Reed said. "It’s just about being smart and not getting too caught up in the game and banging too much. You try not to feel it.

"I got contact on both sides. I hit the ground on both shoulders. I was smart not diving on tackles and joining in on gang tackles. I felt good, and we’ll see how it goes going forward."

Reed’s injury will likely continue to be a concern and will be monitored throughout the season.

The Ravens didn’t use Reed in their blitz package. He stayed back deep, remaining away from the line of scrimmage for the majority of the game.

"Health is still very important," Reed said. "It’s still day to day. We were more concerned about conditioning than anything else. Everything worked out fine.

“It’s a blessing to be out there. No hesitation, none at all. I had a couple things where I was a little timid, but I think it kind of helped me."

Reed said doctors initially informed him that he was supposed to be out for the first four or five games.

"I’m still talking about it with the doctors about if there’s any soreness or pain," he said. "We’re just being smart about what we’re doing."

McAlister and cornerback Samari Rolle also missed most of the preseason with injuries, but both played well against the Bengals as they shut down wide receivers Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh.

McAlister recovered a fumble to go with his interception.

"When they started to call the starting lineup and I saw Ed was behind me, I said, ‘Oh, we good,’" linebacker Terrell Suggs said. "I told him early in the week, ‘You don’t have to hit nobody. You just get us lined up and tell us where we got to go and we’ll be all right.’"