Revis Says Ravens Were In Mix To Sign Him
Jimmy Smith and Darrelle Revis in the backfield together is a salivating image.
But alas, it was not to be.
Arguably the best cornerback in the game today, Revis recently said the Ravens were one of several teams that showed interest in signing him during his brief moment on the market earlier this month.
But as we already know, he ultimately signed with the New York Jets for five years and a whopping $70 million on the first day of free agency.
It was mostly seen as a two-way race between the Jets and New England Patriots at the time, but Revis said there were other suitors.
"(It) was the Packers, Steelers, Baltimore as well as Cleveland, the Chiefs, the Jets and also the Pats, so there was a number of teams there," Revis told SNY's Loud Mouths with Adam Schein and Chris Carlin. "I sat down and had conversations with (them) to see if we could work something out."
This is the first have we ever heard of the Ravens' involvement. Other than Green Bay, most of the other teams were already known suitors.
The Baltimore-Revis link is both surprising and not at all surprising at the same time.
It is surprising because the Ravens virtually had no money under the cap when the Patriots decided not to pick up Revis' $20 million option for the 2015 season on March 9, making the six-time Pro Bowler an unrestricted free agent.
How in the world were the Ravens going to afford Revis? We now know he is costing the Jets $16 million (the same amount Haloti Ngata was scheduled to make) of salary-cap space this season. That's the biggest cap hit of any cornerback in the league.
Well, Baltimore couldn't afford him, which is likely why he's not a Raven today.
However, it is not surprising that the Ravens reached out because … why not? The best corner hits the market and you should at least make a phone call, especially considering the Ravens' need in the secondary.
We know Head Coach John Harbaugh is a big admirer of Revis. Prior to his matchup against the Patriots in the divisional playoffs, Harbaugh said he wanted his players to study how Revis plays the game.
"We talk to our corners and [tell them to] watch Darrelle Revis," Harbaugh said in January. "Watch how he plays technique. Watch how square he plays and how patient he is. He's always in the right spot. It seems like they're running the routes right to him. He's got a knack. He's as good as he ever was."
The Ravens haven't confirmed they reached out to Revis, and if they indeed did, we don't know how serious talks ever got.
Don't Be Surprised If Jennings, Crabtree Fill Receiver Void
Harbaugh reiterated Tuesday that the Ravens don't want to head into the draft with any major needs. Filling big holes prior to the draft is key to staying true to the "best player available" philosophy that has served the Ravens well for so many years.
But it would be tempting to temporarily turn away from that philosophy unless they find a replacement for wide receiver Torrey Smith over the next month.
"The two big receivers left in free agency are Michael Crabtree and Greg Jennings," ESPN's Jamison Hensley said.
"It wouldn’t be surprising to see if the Ravens are connected to either one of them. Under General manager Ozzie Newsome, the Ravens don't like to have huge holes entering the draft and if they don't sign Jennings or Crabtree, there will be a major void at wide receiver."
If the Ravens are interested, they may need to jump into the market soon because interest for both receivers has started to heat up.
Jennings, 33, reportedly had a "tentative" meeting with the Miami Dolphins set up at the owners meetings, and he already met with the Jacksonville Jaguars last weekend. Jennings wouldn't count against the compensatory pick formula because he was a Minnesota Vikings salary-cap casualty. He was reportedly due $11 million in 2015 after catching 59 passes for 742 yards and six touchdowns last season.
Crabtree, 27, has also reportedly drawn interest from the Dolphins but that chatter has quieted. The San Francisco 49ers said this week that they are open to having him back. Crabtree is a true unrestricted free agent, so he essentially could cost the Ravens a mid-round draft pick on top of an agreed upon salary.
Crabtree told CSN* *Bay Area that he is "willing to wait however long it takes" to find the right deal.
Ravens Salary-Cap Update: $8.386 Million Available
The Baltimore Sun's Aaron Wilson says the Ravens have about $8.386 million left to spend in cap money, which is about the same amount we discussed last Friday.
"[That's] a solid financial situation at this stage of the offseason," wrote Wilson. "That means the Ravens have enough financial flexibility to sign free agents, extend current players under contract and have enough money set aside for their rookie pool to sign as many as 10 draft picks."
Wilson listed the top-27 salary-cap commitments this season, including dead money. Here's the top 10:
- Quarterback Joe Flacco ($14.55 million)
- Former running back Ray Rice ($9.5 million)
- Cornerback Lardarius Webb ($9.25 million)
- Offensive guard Marshal Yanda ($8.45 million)
- Offensive tackle Eugene Monroe ($7.7 million)
- Outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil ($7.375 million)
- Cornerback Jimmy Smith ($6.898 million)
- Tight end Dennis Pitta ($6.2 million)
- Wide receiver Steve Smith ($4.166 million)
- Outside linebacker Terrell Suggs ($3.95 million)
Can Ravens Strike Gold At No. 26 Again?
Now that the Ravens' 2015 draft order has been finalized, WNST's Luke Jones had some fun and looked back on past players selected by the Ravens at each of those spots (or as close as possible) over the years:
Could the Ravens strike gold with the No. 26 pick this year like they did in 1996?
26th overall: LB Ray Lewis, 1996
58th overall: WR Torrey Smith, 2011
90th overall: CB Lardarius Webb (88th), 2009
122nd overall: WR Tandon Doss (123rd), 2011
125th overall: LB Ed Hartwell (126th), 2001
136th overall: LB Jason Phillips (137th), 2009
158th overall: FB Justin Green, 2005
171st overall: LB Dexter Daniels (172nd overall), 1996
175th overall: G John Urschel, 2014
203rd overall: P Sam Koch, 2006
Harbaugh No. 5 On Coaches Ranking List
Well, this is just too low. (I'm not biased, right?)
CBSSports.com's Pete Prisco put together his NFL coaching rankings, and Harbaugh came in at No. 5 behind Bill Belichick, Pete Carroll, Mike McCarthy and Tom Coughlin.
"In his seven seasons with the Ravens, Harbaugh is 72-40 for a sizzling winning percentage of .643, which is third best of all active coaches," wrote Prisco. "He is also 10-5 in the playoffs with one Super Bowl victory. His worst record in seven seasons is 8-8."
Much respect to all the men ahead of Harbaugh, but where would you rank him?
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