Pundit Looks at What Future Could Hold for Several Notable Ravens
With the Ravens' offseason underway, The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec took stock of the roster.
Here are Zrebiec's takeaways regarding the future of some notable players:
TE Isaiah Likely
"Likely has gotten better every year, and if that trajectory continues, he stands to be a top free agent next offseason. The Ravens typically don't let homegrown players like him out of the building."
DT Travis Jones
"It feels like the 25-year-old still has so much room to grow. He'll be a major piece on what could be a younger defensive line next season."
OLB Tavius Robinson
"The 2023 fourth-round pick took a step forward in his second season and figures to have a growing role in the linebacker rotation."
OLB Kyle Van Noy
"The 33-year-old had a career-high 12 1/2 sacks. Moving on from him is one way to create cap savings, but with a reasonable $6.13 million salary-cap hit for 2025, his production has far exceeded his price."
CB Marlon Humphrey
"The veteran regained his Pro Bowl form and could be in line for a contract extension due to the high salary-cap number."
OLB David Ojabo
"The 2022 second-round pick wasn't able to gain any traction, and his roster spot for 2025 no longer feels like a sure thing. Baltimore would create $1.8 million of cap savings by moving on."
CB T.J. Tampa
"With Brandon Stephens, Arthur Maulet and Tre'Davious White all uncertain to return, the 2024 fourth-round pick will have an opportunity to earn a bigger role. He needs to avoid the nagging injuries that dogged him as a rookie."
FB Patrick Ricard
"He's one of the unsung heroes of this team year in and year out, but the cash-strapped Ravens will have to decide whether the perennial Pro Bowler is a luxury or a necessity."
WR Tylan Wallace
"Wallace didn't get a ton of opportunities to make plays, but he responded when he did. He's the type of player the Ravens try to keep."
Ronnie Stanley Is Ravens' Top Free-Agency Decision
ESPN asked its NFL Nation reporters to pick the one free agent from the team they cover whose contract status will shape that franchise's offseason the most.
Unsurprisingly, veteran left tackle Ronnie Stanley was Jamison Hensley’s choice.
"There's no question the Ravens would like to retain Stanley, who had a solid bounce-back season in blocking on Lamar Jackson's blind side," Hensley wrote. "He ranked 12th in pass block win rate among tackles (92.5%), played in every game for the first time in his nine-year career and continued to be a respected leader. The issue will be cost for Stanley, who is expected to be one of the top left tackles available in free agency. Baltimore, which is projected to have limited salary cap space, probably won't overspend on an offensive lineman who will turn 31 around the start of free agency."
Stanley was ranked the No. 1 offensive tackle set to hit free agency by Pro Football Focus and the No. 3 pending free agent overall by ESPN.
"It's hard to argue that any player improved their free-agency stock more this season than the Ravens' left tackle," PFF wrote. "After a devastating ankle injury in 2021 seemed to stall his career, Ronnie Stanley was back to top form in 2024, posting an impressive 79.6 PFF pass-blocking grade through the first 12 weeks."
If the Ravens don't re-sign Stanley, one option could be to move Roger Rosengarten to the left side after an impressive rookie season at right tackle. Rosengarten started his college career at Washington playing left tackle before flipping over to protect the blindside of lefty quarterback Michael Penix Jr.
One Player Is Above Lamar Jackson in Bleacher Report's QB Rankings
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport ranked all 32 starting quarterbacks. Lamar Jackson came in at No. 2, one spot ahead of the Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen – Jackson's top competitor for the MVP award this season – and one spot behind the Kansas City Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes.
"Jackson's lack of success in the postseason is going to haunt him until he crests that hill. But he remains quite possibly the single-hardest player in the entire NFL to defend," Davenport wrote. "Jackson's 915 rushing yards led all quarterbacks — and broke Michael Vick's career record for rushing yards at the position. He also threw for the sixth-most passing yards and second-most passing scores in the league. Jackson led the league in touchdown percentage, yards per attempt, air yards per attempt and passer rating. Other than that, he was just OK."
The Cincinnati Bengals' Joe Burrow (No. 4) and Philadelphia Eagles' Jalen Hurts (No. 5) rounded out Davenport's "fantastic five" tier.
