Baltimore Ravens first-round draft pick Matt Elam has been promoted to the starting lineup, but the player he's replacing is a mild surprise.
Elam now is listed as the starting free safety on the team's official depth chart after playing 66 snaps to just six snaps for Michael Huff in Week 2.
The expectation was that Elam eventually would replace James Ihedigbo, who was a career special-teamer before moving to Bernard Pollard's vacated strong safety spot this offseason.
Huff was exploited in coverage during the Denver Broncos' second-half barrage in the season opener. It's a good sign that the Ravens are comfortable enough with Elam's progress to elevate him over a proven veteran after just two games.
The next step for the Ravens' defense will be getting second-round draft pick Arthur Brown ready to take over at inside linebacker next to a reinvigorated Daryl Smith.
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