OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Pro Bowl defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike was ruled out for the Baltimore Ravens' season opener at the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, but he is nearing a return from a neck injury that forced him to miss the last 15 games of the 2025 season.
"He is really, really close," Ravens coach Jesse Minter said after Friday's practice. "He's going to be ready to roll here soon. He's in a really good place and just love where he's at."
Madubuike suffered a significant neck injury nearly one year ago -- Sept. 14 -- in a Week 2 game against the Cleveland Browns. The Ravens were vague about the details regarding Madubuike's injury, which caused uncertainty about his future.
Speaking to reporters for the first time since hurting his neck, Madubuike called the past year "one of the hardest points of my life" but said he never thought the injury would end his career.
"In my head, I always knew -- I had no doubt -- I was going to be back," Madubuike said. "It was just about the process of coming back, and now we're here."
The optimism about Madubuike's return began when he underwent neck surgery in April, which left doctors believing he would be able to resume playing this season. He was activated off the physically unable to perform list on the first day of training camp in late July and participated in every practice.
Madubuike had been limited to individual drills for most of the summer, but he started working in positional drills toward the end of training camp and in team drills for the past two weeks.
On Friday, Madubuike repeatedly smiled when talking about suiting up for a game again.
"I think about it all the time. I really do," Madubuike said. "I don't know when that time will be, but I feel like the more I think about it, the closer I get. So I'm thinking about it a lot right now."
Madubuike, 28, has established himself as one of the most dominant interior defensive linemen in the game. From the start of 2023 until he was put on injured reserve on Sept. 27 last year, Madubuike's 21.5 sacks were the most by an NFL defensive tackle.
Without Madubuike, Baltimore struggled to get consistent pressure on quarterbacks, as no Ravens player had more than five sacks last season. The Ravens went from second in the NFL with 54 sacks in 2024 to 30 sacks last season -- the team's fewest in 15 years.
"When you hear about neck injuries and stuff like that, it is pretty serious," Madubuike said. "So you want to take precautions. You want to make sure that you're strong and you're doing the little things right, take it one day at a time. And that's what I did, and that's what this organization helped me to do. And I'm in a state right now ... I'll get out there pretty soon."