General Manager Eric DeCosta was disappointed like the rest of Ravens supporters when Baltimore was eliminated from the playoffs in Buffalo.
But the offseason is DeCosta's season, and he's already getting to work planning how to build the 2025 Baltimore Ravens.
First of all, DeCosta expressed his belief that tight end Mark Andrews, cornerback Marlon Humphrey, and kicker Justin Tucker will remain with the team. With about $17 million projected in salary-cap space, Ravens aren't in a position where they need to make cuts.
Next is identifying which team's pending free agents the team plans to keep and which ones will hit the market.
Here’s a full look at the Ravens’ free agent list. And here's what DeCosta had to say about some of Baltimore's top free agents – offensive linemen Ronnie Stanley and Patrick Mekari, cornerback Brandon Stephens, and fullback Patrick Ricard:
OT Ronnie Stanley & OL Patrick Mekari
Stanley returned to good health and strong play this season. He started all 17 games, gave up two sacks on 590 pass blocking reps (per Pro Football Focus) and helped pave the way for the league's leading rushing attack.
Stanley will turn 31 shortly after free agency opens. The Ravens' sixth-overall pick in 2016 has played all nine seasons of his NFL career in Baltimore. He's become a core team leader who embraces grooming younger offensive linemen and loves blocking for Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry.
Mekari proved that he can hold up as a full-time starter, beginning at right tackle before shifting to left guard. Versatility is still Mekeri's super strength, and something that the Ravens highly value, but he will likely look to ensure a starting role wherever he plans next.
"We are aware that we have some guys whose contracts are up, and we'll look at that and certainly have some discussions with players," DeCosta said.
"We'll look at potentially bringing back our guys; we'll look at the draft; we'll look at free agency; we'll overturn every rock to find as many good offensive linemen as we can, and I think we have some good young players on the team – they've shown that."
The Ravens ripped off the Band-Aid in Phase 1 of the offensive line rebuild last year, opting not to re-sign veterans Kevin Zeitler, Morgan Moses, and John Simpson. If Phase 2 means letting Stanley and Mekari depart, the Ravens have some options.
The Ravens could turn to Andrew Vorhees at left guard. In his first true season, Vorhees originally won the starting job out of training camp but suffered an early-season ankle injury and Mekari supplanted him.
"One thing we've seen over the years with that position is guys get better as they get older and more established. They get in the weight room, they get stronger and play better, so that's going to be the case with the guys we have," DeCosta said.
If Stanley didn't return, the Ravens could flip Roger Rosengarten to the left side after his highly successful rookie year at right tackle. DeCosta noted that Rosengarten has played both sides before. Baltimore could then look to strike gold with another tackle in the draft like it did with Rosengarten at the end of the second round and develop him quickly.
"We're blessed to have really good coaches and some good young players, but also, we realize we're going to have – conservatively – 10 or 11 draft picks this year, free agency, and still a chance to get some deals signed with some of those guys," DeCosta said.
In summary, all options are on the table. But one of the Ravens' takeaways heading into this offseason was that Phase 1 was a success, even if painful at first.
"I think our goal is to always have the best offensive line that we can have," DeCosta said. "We made a tough call last year to go younger and have some younger guys play, and we knew we'd have a few growing pains. I think we had a few, but looking back on it, I think it was absolutely the right thing to do, and we saw our guys improve and get better and really mesh as a unit and gel."
FB Patrick Ricard
Ricard has been with the Ravens since 2017, going from an undrafted defensive lineman to a five-time Pro Bowl fullback. He has proven that, even in Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken's more balanced offense, he's still a key weapon.
As he cleaned out his locker Monday, Ricard told reporters he hoped he could retire a Raven. DeCosta shares that sentiment.
"I think Pat knows how we feel about him, and I would for him to retire as a Raven, too. He epitomizes everything that we're all about," DeCosta said.
"And he's another undrafted guy who just became – in my opinion – the best at his position. So, we'll have those discussions. This is not the first time he's been a free agent. In fact, I think he's signed at least two deals with us after his rookie deal, so this is probably his fourth contract now with us – if we can get him signed – and I would say that would be the goal."
CB Brandon Stephens
Stephens went from a backup college running back to a starting NFL cornerback. That's a remarkable story and testament to the person and player that Stephens is.
However, Stephens has been the league's most-targeted cornerback over the past two seasons, and he had a tougher season this year. According to PFF, Stephens gave up 72 catches for 926 yards and five touchdowns this season.
"'B-Steve' is a great pro – an awesome attitude, a great teammate. He'd probably say he didn't have as good a year this year, but his attitude never wavered," DeCosta said. "He was out there, very, very dependable, good practice player, tough, physical guy. He's a free agent, so there is a lot of pressure on him in his mind.
"We'll have to see what happens with him. He's probably going to have a chance to test the market and see what his value is, but he's helped us win a lot of games over the last couple of years. He's been a big part of our success, and I'm proud of him for that."
