NEWSLETTER
The Baltimore Ravens’ 2023 season ended with a disappointing home loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game. There’s continuity on the offensive side of the ball, with the league MVP, Lamar Jackson, entering his second season in offensive coordinator Todd Monken’s system.
They have a few more questions to answer on the defensive side of the ball. Defensive coordinator Mike MacDonald is the new head coach in Seattle, and several other key assistants have left as well. Linebackers coach Zach Orr was promoted to defensive coordinator to replace MacDonald, and Orr has been on staff in Baltimore since 2017, minus a one-year run as the Jaguars linebacker coach back in 2021.
Baltimore Ravens Effective Salary Cap Space
(how much a team will have to spend after signing at least 51 players and its projected rookie class to its roster.)
$1,367,202 (20th in the league, per OverTheCap.com)
Baltimore Ravens Pending Free Agents
| Player | Pos. | Type | Snaps | Age | Current APY | Guarantees |
| John Simpson | LG | UFA | 99.40% | 27 | $1,010,000 | $0 |
| Patrick Queen | LB | UFA | 96.70% | 25 | $3,040,418 | $11,843,261 |
| Kevin Zeitler | RG | Void | 87.30% | 34 | $7,500,000 | $16,000,000 |
| Geno Stone | S | Void | 82.10% | 25 | $1,760,000 | $750,000 |
| Justin Madubuike | IDL | UFA | 65.30% | 27 | $1,213,328 | $1,089,680 |
| Jadeveon Clowney | EDGE | UFA | 56.40% | 31 | $2,505,000 | $2,165,000 |
| Kyle Van Noy | EDGE | UFA | 41.90% | 33 | $1,600,000 | $1,400,000 |
| Gus Edwards | RB | Void | 41.70% | 29 | $3,384,000 | $2,300,000 |
| Odell Beckham Jr. | WR | Void | 41.30% | 32 | $15,000,000 | $15,000,000 |
| Ronald Darby | CB | UFA | 38.10% | 30 | $1,700,000 | $500,000 |
| Arthur Maulet | CB | UFA | 35.20% | 31 | $1,080,000 | $220,000 |
| Tyler Ott | LS | UFA | 33.60% | 32 | $1,080,000 | $0 |
| Brent Urban | IDL | UFA | 24.20% | 33 | $1,165,000 | $0 |
| Rock Ya-Sin | CB | Void | 24.10% | 28 | $4,000,000 | $4,000,000 |
| Dalvin Cook | RB | UFA | 18.30% | 29 | $1,080,000 | $0 |
| J.K. Dobbins | RB | UFA | 2.70% | 26 | $1,432,360 | $3,207,293 |
Top Ravens Offseason Decisions/Positional Needs
Offensive Line
The Ravens have decisions to make about two key offensive linemen, right guard Kevin Zeitler and left guard John Simpson. Zeitler is 34 and coming off of his first Pro Bowl season at right guard, so bringing him back on a short-term deal probably makes sense for both the player and the team. Simpson was a pillar of health last season, playing 99.4% of the Ravens’ offensive snaps.
Running Back
The Ravens have been rumored to be interested in adding a veteran free-agent running back this offseason, with J.K. Dobbins, Gus Edwards, and Dalvin Cook free agents. That’s not a position where teams are sinking massive free-agent resources these days, but from an offensive system fit standpoint, a Lamar Jackson/Derrick Henry backfield pairing would be interesting. Bringing Gus Edwards back and pairing him with Justice Hill again is also a viable and likely cost-effective option as well.
Defensive Front 7
Defensively, interior defensive lineman Justin Madubuike should be the offseason priority after tying Kansas City’s Chris Jones with 15 sacks and finishing third among defensive linemen with 77 total pressures. Edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney also thrived under Mike MacDonald last season, totaling 11 sacks on 78 pressures off the edge last season.
The Ravens sunk a lot of money into Roquan Smith, and it’s fair to wonder if they’ll be willing to sink more into his linebacker running mate, Patrick Queen. I’m sure new defensive coordinator Zach Orr will have an opinion here after being Queen’s position coach for the past few seasons, and the team added Trenton Simpson on Day 2 in last year’s draft, so they have a cost-effective in-house option as a potential candidate to replace Queen in 2024.
