Active Roster

The predicament the Orioles are facing with utility player Ryan Flaherty is one of the most difficult decisions to be made here in spring training. And in an organization in desperate need of promising young talent like Flaherty but tight on 25-man roster spots, the decision becomes more perplexing. The Orioles selected Flaherty, a first-round sandwich pick of the Chicago Cubs' in 2008, in December's annual Rule 5 draft, which allows teams to select certain players not protected on other teams' 40-man rosters.

Every Ravens player on the active roster was present for Thursday's practice. Free safety Ed Reed, the team's lone injury concern for Sunday's AFC championship game against the New England Patriots, participated in drills despite his injured left ankle.

The Ravens made a roster move after their final walk-through practice before tomorrow's playoff game against the Houston Texans, signing linebacker Josh Bynes from their practice squad to their 53-man roster, and waiving offensive tackle D.J. Jones. Bynes, who was originally signed by the team last July as an undrafted free agent out of Auburn, was on the Ravens' active roster for their game against the San Francisco 49ers on Nov. 24. He was let go six days later when the Ravens claimed former New York Jets safety Emanuel Cook off waivers.

Each week, we bring you a Q&A with a Ravens player, coach or team executive to help you learn a little more about the team. Today's guest is inside linebacker Albert McClellan. How does it feel to go from undrafted rookie in 2010 to starter against the 49ers on Thanksgiving night? It's like a dream come true. I'm still dreaming right now. I'm not settled with where I am now, but I'm happy and blessed to be where I am now. College career [at Marshall] was great, but unfortunately, I wasn't drafted, so that was a bummer.

Confidence in the health and form of Billy Cundiff, the Ravens announced today that they have released veteran kicker Shayne Graham. Graham, who was signed by the Ravens on Dec. 21 with Cundiff dealing with a left calf injury, was 2-for-2 on field-goal attempts in a 20-14 victory over the Cleveland Browns in Week 15, converting from 48 and 43 yards out along with making both of his extra points. However, the Ravens opted to go with Cundiff in Sunday's regular-season closing 24-16 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Pro Bowl selection last year made his one field-goal attempt from 42 yards.

After the Ravens' 20-14 win against the Cleveland Browns on Saturday, Billy Cundiff said his balky left calf was much improved from the previous week. Coach John Harbaugh agreed with the kicker's assessment during his weekly news conference Monday, but he also said he wants to see Cundiff practice before declaring him ready to contribute against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. “Billy Cundiff is doing really well,” Harbaugh said. “So we'll have to see about this week.

The Ravens have claimed safety Emanuel Cook off waivers from the New York Jets. The move is pending the passing of a physical Cook, who was waived yesterday, has played in 12 career NFL games over the past two seasons including eight this year with the Jets, has eight tackles and a forced fumble in his career. He also has six special teams stops and the Ravens are hoping that he'll upgrade their special teams unit. He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of the South Carolina in 2009.

The Ravens made a roster move Wednesday in light of the Indianapolis Colts plucking a player off of the practice squad. The Colts signed rookie fullback Ryan Mahaffey from the Ravens practice squad to the active roster. To fill the void, the Ravens re-signed tight end Davon Drew, who spent the last four games (including postseason) of the 2010 season on the active roster before getting released this past preseason.