2022 Off Season Free Agency and Draft Thread

So the legal tampering season is underway and the report has rolled in that the Ravens have come to terms with Marcus Williams on a deal. The deal reportedly is 5 years 70 mil. I did not see the guaranteed money portion at this point and we'll surely find out when it is signed tomorrow at some point.

I am not sure how I feel about this since I still have a bad taste from the Earl Thomas signing. I will say my gut is to not like it spending all that money on a Safety when I thought our pass rush and OL/DL were bigger priorities.

I am still waiting for the shoe to drop on Bozeman. I think that was the one I would have liked to keep over this deal for Williams.

I am not a fan of spending big bucks on Ricard either. I feel like we are one of the few teams that utilize a FB and they are really a dime a dozen.

I do not want to see the team spend a bunch on a WR either, I am happy we have stayed away so far.

I was hoping that we would have bolstered the OL through FA signing or trade perhaps staring with Bozeman from our own camp assuming the money was not stupid.

 

As of now, the Ravens have signed S Marcus Williams and OT Morgan Moses. Williams is a 2t year old safety with some great range and good ball skills. Moses has been very durable in his career.

Humphrey should be back at 100% but if Peters is as well, the secondary will be interesting. If Stanley returns to form, finally, the o-line could see a serious turn around from last season

 

And now Zadarius Smith is returning to Baltimore. So far the Ravens have added a safety, OT, and pass rusher. Depending on Stanley and Bozeman, they may need another tackle and a center. Outside of that, the "needs" become minor. Maybe another TE if they don't use Ricard in that spot. Maybe another ILB if they aren't comfortable with Harrison. Then again with a new DC, who knows

 

Whoops, my bad! I spoke too soon. Let's delete that Zadarius Smith line and add in Michael Pierce

 

Ravens personnel updates:

Additions:

Marcus Williams Safety 5 yr 70 mil
Morgan Moses OT 3 yr 15 mil
Michael Pierce DT 3 yr 16.5 mil
Pat Ricard FB 3 yrs 12 mill


Subtractions;

Anthony Averett CB 1 yr 4.5 mil with the Raiders
Eric Tomlinson TE 1 yr ??? money with the Broncos
Bradley Bozeman 1 yr Carolina

Still waiting on the bigger names here:

Pernell McPhee
Calais Campbell
Jimmy Smith
Justin Houston
Brandon Williams
Justin Ellis

 

I'd say Brandon Williams is as good as gone. Pierce will be the space eater this year. I also don't expect Houston back either.

Jimmy and Calais I expect back

 

I agree. Pierce is the new middle man. Bozeman is gone and I think the fact they gave Mehkari the bigger contract was based on position flexibility which signaled the goodbye to Bozeman I expect that the O-Line will now look like:

Stanley,Cleveland,Mehkari,Zeitler,Moses as starters
Mekhari,Powers,Colon,Phillips,Phillips as backups

I think the real litmus test will be the draft. We have a ton of picks that will likely become solid starters for the team so I anticipate lots of young players especially if they are planning on extending Lamar now that the other QB's have gotten their deals....

 

Don't forget James. He "should" be fully healed by training camp and he at least has backup potential

 

Yep, I totally did forget about him. Clearly the FO is comfortable with both Stanley and James so it seems pretty clear now that Mehkari is the new center and James, Moses Phillips and Stanley are the tackle crew.

 

So according to football outsiders, the 2021 Ravens were the most injured team in NFL history. Yet people will swear that even when healthy we'll be average

AGL Injury Numbers Point to Ravens Rebound in 2022

 

The draft is one day away and I think we can safely assume that the Ravens will not sign Lamar between now and then.

If I had to guess at the action for Thursday, I would guess that the Ravens trade back and pick up some additional picks, particularly for next years draft. I think dropping from 14 back to the 20's will happen from a team that wants a top WR or some other top position and the Ravens benefit and still get a solid pick.

 

Well, there's rumors that the Ravens have inquired about trading UP with a few teams. The rumors state they are targeting a CB or pass rusher.

 

Yeah, I saw that there are rumors that they would like to move up a bit. I assume that would mean to the top 10ish (a few spots up) if the right players falls to that range. I guess I would not mind that if they have a specific player they target. I think giving up a couple of the 4th rounders would be ok but I do not want to give up any of our 1,2,or 3rd rounders for that. I like having 4 of the top 100 picks.

 

Any particular player you'd like to see drafted tonight?

Personally, I want one of the top 3 edge rushers, but I'd be fine with a corner also. Sauce Gardner is an interesting prospect to me. I also wouldn't lose my mind if Jordan Davis gets drafted

 

Trading Hollywood was not something I saw coming. And now they have traded back again, this means at least 3 of their favored players are still on the board here. I suspect that they will take a LB here but very possibly an OL at this point since all the really good WR are gone and they took a safety at 14.

 

Kirk Ferentz sends a new Center to the Ravens. Linderbaum, good pick right here, and keeps Mekari from playing Center. I like it but giving up Hollywood for this? Bateman better have a great 2nd season.

 

Well, none of the players I wanted at 14 were available, but I'm not upset about the draft so far. The Hollywood trade actually pissed me off, but they have a chance to get a decent WR tomorrow. The ones available tomorrow have potential.

Hamilton pretty much locks up our safety positions for a few years. If Peters and Humphrey come back at 90% or better, this secondary could be a problem. Pass rusher and WR tomorrow imo.

Picking the top center at 25 isn't the sexy pick, but it was a good one. Center is locked up, RG locked up, and a battle for LG. At worst, Lamar should be able to step up in the pocket when needed. The question will be the tackle positions. Is Stanley healthy? Who will win the RT battle between Moses and Mekari? I feel like I'm forgetting someone in the RT battle. Either way, if those two positions work out, Lamar could have a 2019 type of line in front of him l

 

Ok, so after day 1 I somewhat echo RR on this. Hamilton was was not my wish but you cannot deny the kid is an extraordinary talent that MacDonald will have fun with. I like Linderbaum and the OLine is now pretty solid and if the reports about Stanley being as good as they and and as ready as they say I like it even more.

I love the Hollywood trade and here's why. They worked the trade masterfully and essentially with the trade and the 3rd rounder and then dropping back a couple of spots and gaining another 4th back, it is like we just got Hollywood for the last 4 years for free. We recouped the pick (in a crazy deep draft) and still got a stud. Lamar seems pissed but clearly Hollywood knew since he was already in Arizona!

I think we package some of the 4th rounders together and move up and grab some of the oozing talent that spilled into the 2nd round at edge and CB nd WR. I like the aggressive move especially in a draft where , after the top 10 players, they were all essentially 2nd round picks for the next 50 ranked guys.

Based on some assessments, it seems the ravens picked up 2 of the top 15 ranked players on day 1. I always love that.

 

And I saw the article that explains the Hollywood trade stating that he wanted out of Baltimore and asked to be traded after the season and the trade was finalized earlier in the week, hence the reason he was at the Arizona draft party. It does say Lamar knew what was up, but that makes sense. I would not have wanted to be faced with dealing with him all season in that state of mind and having to deal with poor performance. I like the guys we have in place with Bateman, Proche, Duvernay and Wallace.

 

I actually hope they trade 3 or 4 of those 4th rounders for a 2nd. I don't know how the draft charts matchup that trade value. Get another 2nd and draft Ojabo to let me sit until next year. Use the other 2nd and the 3rd tonight and get your best available players at CB, LB, Edge, or WR. Use the 2 remaining 4th tomorrow and which ever positions you didn't get today