Ravens Retaining All of Their Young, Homegrown Pro Bowlers 'Virtually Impossible'
Every NFL team has its share of questions. For the Ravens, one of the main questions is: How are they going to retain all these good players?
As the saying goes, that's a good problem to have and we should all enjoy it while we have them. Nevertheless, it is a challenging situation the organization will have to deal with in the near future.
The Ravens have drafted a league-best six Pro Bowlers since 2016, per ESPN's Jamison Hensley, all of whom will be seeking new contracts over the next two years. The players in question are Jackson, offensive tackles Ronnie Stanley and Orlando Brown Jr., tight end Mark Andrews, cornerback Marlon Humphrey and outside linebacker Matthew Judon.
The odds of keeping all of them in Baltimore aren't encouraging.
"It's virtually impossible," said Mike Tannenbaum, ESPN's front-office insider and former executive for the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins. "You have to get creative. You have to see if they can be selfless. It's a good problem to have."
What is encouraging is the Ravens' history of keeping their homegrown stars.
"While many will remember how Baltimore was outbid last year by the Jets for middle linebacker C.J. Mosley, the fact is the Ravens have signed 13 of 18 drafted Pro Bowl players to second contracts," Hensley wrote. "In addition to Mosley, the only exceptions have been guard Ben Grubbs and three fullbacks (Ovie Mughelli, Le'Ron McClain and Kyle Juszczyk)."
The franchise tag is a useful tool in keeping valued players in the fold in the short term in the absence of an agreement on a long-term deal. Judon is playing under the tag this season, and Stanley could receive the designation for 2021.
Stanley, the protector of Jackson's blind side, is coming off one of the best seasons ever for a left tackle. He could be destined to become the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league.
"While Stanley is presumably the top priority for the next big deal, the Ravens held no contract talks with Stanley for six months before resuming them last week," Hensley wrote.
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August 13, 2020 at 08:58PM
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