When the Ravens began the 2019 season, their wide receiving corps consisted of veterans Willie Snead IV and Seth Roberts, rookies Marquise Brown and Miles Boykin, second-year player Jaleel Scott and special teamer Chris Moore.
That was the year the Ravens went 14-2 in the regular season, finished second in the NFL in yards per game and first in points per game, and quarterback Lamar Jackson led the NFL in touchdown passes and was the league’s second unanimous Most Valuable Player.
If you didn’t know any better, you could easily conclude that general manager Eric DeCosta was trying to replicate the 2019 offensive recipe with his offseason moves. That team’s biggest strength was a dominant offensive line and DeCosta spent this offseason fortifying that group, signing veteran offensive tackle Morgan Moses and drafting center Tyler Linderbaum in the first round and tackle Daniel Faalele in the fourth.
In the running and passing games, that team leaned heavily on its three tight ends and fullback and used the running backs out of the backfield. Ravens running backs and tight ends combined for 174 receptions for 1,931 yards and 20 touchdown catches in 2019. This offseason, DeCosta re-signed Pro Bowl fullback Patrick Ricard and drafted two tight ends, Charlie Kolar and Isaiah Likely, who join returners Mark Andrews and Nick Boyle. He also added running backs Mike Davis and sixth-round pick Tyler Badie, and both have shown their ability to contribute in the passing game in organized team activities.
Brown was the Ravens’ leading wide receiver in 2019 and caught a total of 46 balls for 584 yards and seven touchdowns. Brown and Snead were the only receivers on the team to have more than 25 receptions. Jackson spread the ball around and the Ravens ran at will and nobody stopped them until Baltimore largely stopped itself in a turnover and drop-filled loss to the Tennessee Titans in the AFC Divisional Playoff round.
The skeptics will point out that if the Ravens had a better receiving corps and weren’t relying on a guy like Roberts — he had a crucial drop in that loss to the Titans — they may not have lost early in the playoffs. They’ll say that defenses were starting to figure out the Ravens. They’ll say that the Ravens can no longer win with such a run-heavy approach because their offensive line isn’t as good.
All are fair critiques. Ravens coach John Harbaugh has talked many times about the need to evolve as an offense and be more dangerous in the downfield passing game. The question is whether the Ravens have the personnel to do it. Team decision-makers apparently believe they do, because there’s been little evidence they’ve aggressively pursued some of the top available receivers, even after trading Brown to the Cardinals. They’ll probably still sign a veteran, but a guy like Julio Jones, T.Y. Hilton, Cole Beasley or Will Fuller isn’t going to dramatically change the look of the offense at this stage of the offseason.
On paper, the Ravens made improvements with their pass blocking with the additions of Moses and Linderbaum and those improvements could be significant if Ronnie Stanley is healthy. Their backfield is more explosive and diverse. They’ve added pass-catching ability and explosiveness to their tight ends group. But they’ve done nothing at wide receiver except trade the guy who was considered the most dynamic and established member.
It sure is a show of confidence in Rashod Bateman, Devin Duvernay, James Proche and Tylan Wallace. It also sure seems like the Ravens are banking on the 2019 offensive recipe repeating itself.
Even though he was mostly a bystander, even though his on-field activity was limited to putting on his helmet and catching balls from the Jugs machine, the sight of rehabbing running back J.K. Dobbins on the practice field last week had to be a pleasant one for Ravens officials. Dobbins has done much of his rehab from a torn ACL outside of the building, but the Ravens have been getting good reports and they got a chance to take a closer look last week.
The Ravens remain optimistic that Dobbins will be a factor this season, whether it’s in Week 1 or later, but they also are being realistic given the nature of the former Ohio State standout’s knee injury. I spoke to a Ravens decision-maker early in the offseason, and he acknowledged that the Ravens had to be prepared — and would be — for Dobbins and fellow back Gus Edwards, who is also coming off a torn ACL, potentially not finding their pre-injury form early in the 2022 season, if at all this year.
Zachary Engberg and David Chao, the former head physician for the San Diego Chargers, wrote a story last week for Sports Injury Central about why expectations should be tempered with both of the rehabbing backs. The article expresses doubt that Dobbins and Edwards will be ready for the regular season or even be “effective” in 2022 when they do return.
Time will tell, and that may be tough to hear, especially with how essential a more explosive running game is to the Ravens’ success. However, that the Ravens signed Davis and took Badie in the draft is certainly an indication that Baltimore understands the challenges ahead for Dobbins and Edwards. It’s also another reason Justice Hill’s roster chances should not be dismissed despite a crowded backfield.
1. When Linderbaum agreed to his rookie contract last week, he became just the third of the Ravens’ 11 draft picks to sign. The Ravens are lagging behind much of the league in terms of draft pick signings, but I’ve heard nothing to indicate there are any issues. I was told the Ravens could wrap up most of these deals at any time. Maybe the Ravens are behind their usual pace, but it’s not unfamiliar territory. Last year, the Ravens didn’t sign first-round outside linebacker Odafe Oweh until June 11 and they didn’t come to agreement with third-round defensive back Brandon Stephens until July 21. They’ll all get done. One of the hold-ups has been that very few fourth-round picks league-wide have signed. Once some of these fourth-rounders start finalizing their deals, other guys drafted behind them will fall into place. Six of the Ravens’ eight unsigned draft picks are fourth-rounders.
Done deal❗️@TLinderbaum has officially signed his rookie contract. 🖊
📰: https://t.co/lKlJNhKNGB pic.twitter.com/QdMjfsgcr9
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) June 2, 2022
2. Per the NFLPA’s Public Salary Cap Report, the Ravens have slightly more than $9 million of available cap space. Some of these draft-pick signings will eat into that. The Ravens will also likely still sign a free-agent pass rusher, whether it’s Justin Houston or somebody else, and a free-agent receiver. It still feels inevitable that whether it’s through a release or two, an extension or a contract restructure, the Ravens will have to create more space in the coming weeks. DeCosta has said several times that his biggest regret last season is that the team didn’t have the cap flexibility to augment its injury-riddled roster with a significant signing or trade during the season. It’s hard to imagine DeCosta will allow his team to be in that same predicament this year. He’ll want to enter the regular season with some cap cushion and they won’t have that once the draft picks and a few more veterans are signed before late July.
3. Defensive lineman Derek Wolfe has been mentioned frequently as a post-June 1 cut candidate, but since his 2022 salary is fully guaranteed, jettisoning him is not going to help the Ravens from a cap perspective. Still, I don’t think that makes the 32-year-old a lock to be with the Ravens when training camp starts late next month. As I’ve said or written before, Wolfe is more of a football decision than a financial one. The Ravens and Wolfe just never seemed to be on the same page last year when it came to his injury and rehab. When he opted to have hip surgery in January despite missing the whole 2021 season, Wolfe essentially assured that the Ravens couldn’t cut him before the start of the new league year in mid-March, because his contract was injury guaranteed and he wouldn’t have been healthy enough to pass a physical. That brings us to the present, where it’s fair to ask whether there’s enough trust between both sides to try again this year. Wolfe recently posted a photo of himself hauling a bear on his back that he apparently had just killed on a hunting expedition, which suggests his recovery from hip surgery is going pretty well. The Ravens, however, re-signed Calais Campbell, added Michael Pierce and Brent Urban, drafted Travis Jones and have several young defensive linemen, including Justin Madubuike, Broderick Washington and Isaiah Mack. Wolfe is a quality player when he’s healthy and engaged, but given the fact the Ravens can’t be sure he’ll be either, they have a decision to make.
4. Another potential roster decision concerns veteran offensive tackle Ja’Wuan James. It was viewed as a low-risk, high-reward move last June when the Ravens agreed to a two-year, $2.5 million deal with James, who was recovering from a torn Achilles at the time and considered a long shot to play in 2021. James returned to practice late last season but was never activated to play in a game. He’s carrying a $3.25 million cap hit in 2022. The Ravens are in no hurry to subtract from their offensive tackle depth with Stanley still recovering from ankle surgery, but they did sign Moses this offseason and used an early fourth-round pick on Faalele. The selection of Linderbaum allows the Ravens to keep Patrick Mekari in a swing tackle role. Baltimore also has Tyre Phillips, who has started games for them at tackle. Add in the fact team officials sound more optimistic about Stanley than they did a few months ago and suddenly James’ role is less clear. James turned 30 last week. He’s missed the past two seasons with significant injuries and he’s played just three games total since 2019. There was no sign of him at OTAs the past two weeks, which usually means a player is either dealing with a physical issue or just opting to stay away. Neither one bodes well for the Ravens, who surely want James getting as many reps as he can to knock off rust. There’s no doubt the best-case scenario is keeping James around, but cutting him would open up $3 million of cap space, and that’s enough for the cap-strapped Ravens to consider their options.
5. First-year defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald had an interesting response last week when he was asked about outside linebacker Jaylon Ferguson’s new look. Ferguson, who is listed as 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds, appears to have remade his body and looks significantly leaner. While saying he didn’t know the reasoning behind Ferguson’s decision to shed weight this offseason, Macdonald acknowledged that “the techniques that we’re teaching are slightly different than he knows, so that’s a little bit of a learning curve for him.” Ferguson’s best quality in his young career has been his ability to set the edge in the run game. His size and bulk have made him a physical presence on the edge, but have never translated into him becoming a pass-rushing threat at the NFL level. This is a big season for Ferguson, who will first need to earn a job, and then he’ll be playing for a contract for 2023 and beyond. You can’t blame him for taking a different offseason approach and trying to add more explosiveness to his pass-rushing repertoire.
6. Players have their reasons for staying away from voluntary OTAs, but it has been a bit surprising to not see Pierce present. Pierce just hasn’t played a lot of football, opting out of the 2020 season for the Minnesota Vikings and playing in just eight games last year. He’s also battled conditioning problems in the past. After signing Pierce to a three-year, $16.5 million contract in March, the Ravens have to be looking forward to getting him on the field.
7. I usually don’t note players changing their representation, but it seems notable with all the chatter surrounding his future in Baltimore this offseason that veteran safety Chuck Clark has found a new agent. He recently hired Joel Segal, who also represents Ravens defensive backs Marlon Humphrey and Tony Jefferson. Clark has done nothing in recent weeks to fuel the speculation that he wants out of Baltimore, showing up to OTAs and continuing to be a defensive leader for the Ravens. I still don’t think it’s a lock that he’ll be a Raven come September. Some teams could use a player like Clark, and safety is the one position the Ravens can afford to subtract from to pick up a future draft pick and a bit of salary-cap breathing room. But by how he’s gone about his business, Clark has calmed the situation, which will make it easier for both sides to move forward, whether that’s together or apart.
8. When Bateman failed to come up with a tough catch down the sideline during the team’s first week of OTAs, a few of the team’s defensive players reminded the second-year wide receiver it was a play he needed to make. When Bateman had a drop last week, Ravens cornerback Marcus Peters, who was watching practice, let the receiver know about it. I can’t recall too many times in the past when one of the Ravens’ defensive players has gotten on an offensive player for a mistake, or vice versa. Perhaps I’m reading a little too much into this, but it tells me the veterans understand just how important a Bateman breakout is to the team’s success this year and they’re going to do their part to make sure he is locked in.
9. The Ravens had 18 players not participating in the first OTA open to the media May 25. There were 17 players not taking part in the second one Wednesday. The third OTA is typically the best attended, because some of the veterans who have been staying away from the facility throughout the offseason want to get a week of work in before the action picks up a little bit in next week’s mandatory minicamp. The Ravens were never going to have close to 90 players on the field this offseason, simply because they have so many guys recovering from major injuries. When you eliminate Dobbins and Edwards, Stanley, outside linebackers Tyus Bowser and David Ojabo, Wolfe and Peters — all of whom were slated to return to the field at some point during training camp — that gets you nearly halfway to the number of absences.
10. Even if they are waiting until late July for a resolution on Houston’s status and the UFA tender, it would make sense for the Ravens to add another outside linebacker sooner rather than later. They have a skeleton crew at the position with Ojabo and Bowser not practicing, Oweh still working his way back from shoulder surgery and not fully participating in workouts and Ferguson also dealing with a physical issue that has limited him in recent OTAs. It’s been Daelin Hayes, Vince Biegel and a few undrafted free agents getting the reps on the outside. This is a case in which the Ravens need more quality and quantity.
(Top photo of Lamar Jackson: Jamie Schwaberow / Getty Images)