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Brandon Stephens Extension On Ravens’ Radar

August 30th, 2024 at 12:57pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

After signing Lamar Jackson and Justin Madubuike to major extensions in the last two years, the Ravens will be looking to retain another piece of homegrown talent in cornerback Brandon Stephens, who broke out as a full-time starter last season.

“He’s a guy that we certainly want to keep here long term,” Ravens GM Eric DeCosta said. “It’s not without challenge. He plays a position where the best players are highly compensated, but we’ll do our best.”

The Ravens drafted Stephens in the third round of the 2021 draft, a pick that was considered a reach by draft pundits at the time. He played running back at UCLA and converted to cornerback at SMU before making another switch to safety as in Baltimore. A 2022 injury to DeShon Elliott pressed Stephens into a starting role as a rookie, and he finished third on the team with 78 tackles. Stephens moved back to cornerback in 2022 but only started four games while behind Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters on the depth chart. Stephens stepped back into a starting role in 2023, playing 99% of the Ravens’ defensive snaps and recording career highs with two interceptions and 11 passes defended.

The Ravens have a history of re-signing their top impending free agents, and they’ll likely make a similar effort with their young cornerback. Stephens may not be as eager to get to the negotiating table, as he lacks league-wide honors and the cornerback market has stagnated in recent years. With players like Patrick Surtain and Sauce Gardner expected to reset the cornerback market next offseason, Stephens may bet on himself and cash in next year.

Baltimore has dealt with that situation before. Justin Madubuike turned down an extension offer in 2023 before his breakout season and earned a $24.5MM-per-year contract that made him the highest-paid DT in the league at signing. The Ravens may not be willing to similarly break the bank for Stephens, though, with substantial sums of money already committed to Lamar Jackson, Roquan Smith, and Marlon Humphrey in the coming years. The team will also need to prioritize extensions for All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton and Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum.

The Ravens are aware that the cornerback market is set to rise and Stephens could price himself out of Baltimore. Baltimore already began restocking its cornerback corps this offseason, drafting Nate Wiggins out of Clemson in the first round and T.J. Tampa out of Iowa State in the fourth. Should no extension be reached soon, the 2024 season stands to be critical for determining Stephens’ value.

Wednesday NFL Transactions: AFC North

August 28th, 2024 at 7:40pm CST by Sam Robinson

Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline Tuesday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters. In addition to waiver claims, teams can begin constructing their 16-man practice squads today. These Bengals, Browns, Ravens and Steelers moves are noted below.

Baltimore Ravens

Signed:

Claimed:

Signed to practice squad:

Cincinnati Bengals

Signed:

Claimed:

Released:

Signed to practice squad:

Cleveland Browns

Signed:

Claimed:

Signed to practice squad:

Pittsburgh Steelers

Signed:

Claimed:

Signed to practice squad:

2024 NFL Waiver Order

August 28th, 2024 at 10:42am CST by Sam Robinson

Waiver claims can begin coming in at 11am CT. While the waiver order will depend on 2024 records in several weeks, teams’ 2023 finishes currently determine it. Here is how the waiver priority list stacks up heading into today’s round of claims:

  1. Carolina Panthers
  2. Washington Commanders
  3. New England Patriots
  4. Arizona Cardinals
  5. Los Angeles Chargers
  6. New York Giants
  7. Tennessee Titans
  8. Atlanta Falcons
  9. Chicago Bears
  10. New York Jets
  11. Minnesota Vikings
  12. Denver Broncos
  13. Las Vegas Raiders
  14. New Orleans Saints
  15. Indianapolis Colts
  16. Seattle Seahawks
  17. Jacksonville Jaguars
  18. Cincinnati Bengals
  19. Los Angeles Rams
  20. Pittsburgh Steelers
  21. Miami Dolphins
  22. Philadelphia Eagles
  23. Cleveland Browns
  24. Dallas Cowboys
  25. Green Bay Packers
  26. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  27. Houston Texans
  28. Buffalo Bills
  29. Detroit Lions
  30. Baltimore Ravens
  31. San Francisco 49ers
  32. Kansas City Chiefs

Ravens Let Go Of WRs Malik Cunningham, Anthony Miller On Way To 53

August 27th, 2024 at 9:39pm CST by Ely Allen

The Ravens have gotten down to the required 53-man roster. Here’s how they did it:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

Placed on IR:

Placed on IR (designated for return):

Placed on reserve/PUP list:

Baltimore will be without the veteran Maulet or electric Mitchell for at least four games to start the season. The other injured reserve placements, which includes two undrafted free agent signings, will miss the entire 2024 season.

For the second year in a row, the Ravens showed questionable draft decision-making as a draft pick from the current year failed to make the 53-man roster. Last year saw fifth-round cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly get waived, while this year sees sixth-round Kentucky quarterback Devin Leary get the early axe. Such occurrences were not common under former general manager Ozzie Newsome, and Ravens fans will hope that Eric DeCosta doesn’t make a habit out of wasting draft picks.

On the other hand, DeCosta continued a usual trend of analytical excellence as the Ravens continued what has become a tradition of seeing at least one undrafted rookie make the initial 53-man roster. This year, the honor goes to Maryland safety Beau Brade. Baltimore chose to enlist the young prospective talent of Brade over retaining the veteran experience of Worley, who has seen some decent time on the Ravens defense in recent years.

Ravens Clear 8 Off Roster Ahead Of Deadline

August 26th, 2024 at 7:30pm CST by Ely Allen

Teams in the NFL are working to trim their rosters down to 53 players, and the Ravens are not exempt from the mass exodus. ESPN’s Jamison Hensley provided an initial list:

Released:

Waived:

Gage’s stay in Baltimore was a short, as he signed only three weeks ago. Gage put up back-to-back seasons over 700 yards in 2020 and 2021 with four touchdowns in each season and, in his lone season with Tampa Bay, Gage finished with 426 yards and a career-high five scores. A torn patellar tendon in 2023 training camp held Gage out for last year, and it seems his return to the field won’t come as a Raven.

Rigerman, Sharp, Simpson, and Walthour were all undrafted free agent signings in May and Ryan one from last year. Browning was an UDFA who originally signed in Buffalo and found his way to Baltimore afterwards.

Williams is an unfortunate name to see on this list. One of two cornerbacks Baltimore took in the 2022 NFL Draft, Williams has been struggling to find a role in the Ravens secondary despite ample opportunities to earn playing time with injuries to starters. In a group that now includes Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Stephens, rookie first-round pick Nate Wiggins, and Arthur Maulet up top, Williams was unable to make an impact in a rotation or depth role after two years with the team.

Ravens OL Coach Joe D’Alessandris Passes Away

August 25th, 2024 at 12:43pm CST by Ely Allen

AUGUST 25: D’Alessandris has sadly passed away, the team announced. We at PFR send our condolences to D’Alessandris’ family, friends, and the many players and fellow coaches he has impacted over the course of his career.

AUGUST 14: Baltimore received some unfortunate news this afternoon as it was announced that “offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris was hospitalized over the weekend with an acute illness,” per a statement from the team. No details were given to the nature of his illness, but the Ravens noted that D’Alessandris’ condition would “require ongoing treatment for an extended period of time.” To fill in during the interim, the team has hired George Warhop to their coaching staff.

D’Alessandris, 70, has been with the Ravens as offensive line coach for the past seven seasons, helping the team to become on the team’s top offenses in the league, along with being a perennial rushing powerhouse. His storied history coaching football dates back to the 1970s. He’s spent time on the staffs of nine universities, two teams in the Canadian Football League, and even a team in the short-lived World League of American Football.

After 30 years of coaching football without making it to the NFL, D’Alessandris finally got his big break in 2008 as an assistant offensive line coach with the Chiefs. After following that up with three-year stints as offensive line coach for the Bills and Chargers, D’Alessandris landed in Baltimore, where he’s been ever since.

Warhop has been coaching for nearly as long, working his first job in 1983, five years after D’Alessandris’ first gig. He spent the next 13 years coaching offensive lines with six universities and was, coincidentally, also an offensive line coach in the WLAF. In 1996, Warhop got his first NFL opportunity in St. Louis and has coached offensive lines in the league ever since, spending time with the Rams, Cardinals, Cowboys, 49ers, Browns, Buccaneers, Jaguars, and Texans.

Warhop’s history throughout his tenure in the NFL has been a rocky one. He’s been fired from multiple positions, once even getting let go mid-season. While he has stuck around for an extended time in some jobs, it’s twice been the result of the head coach that hired him getting fired and the newly hired head coach simply retaining his services for a short period. Most recently, Warhop was hired by the Texans in Lovie Smith‘s lone campaign. He was not retained by DeMeco Ryans.

Warhop will have his work cut out for him as the Ravens have been working this offseason to replace three starters on the offensive line. Left tackle Ronnie Stanley and center Tyler Linderbaum return to their roles, and it seems that second-year guard Andrew Vorhees has taken control of the left guard job. At right tackle, the Ravens seem content to start their sixth-man of the offensive line Patrick Mekari until second-round rookie Roger Rosengarten is ready to take over the job. The real work will come with determining the battle at right guard between Daniel Faalele, Ben Cleveland, and Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, though head coach John Harbaugh has been pretty tapped into this position battle and may take the reins on the decision.

Regardless of the work cut out for the Ravens and Warhop, many of their concerns will still be on the treatment and recovery of D’Alessandris. We at PFR send our best wishes and hopes for a speedy and full recovery to Joe and our thoughts to the D’Alessandris family.

Ravens Rumors: RBs, Samac, Safety

August 24th, 2024 at 5:58pm CST by Ely Allen

So much of the Ravens’ roster is set at the top of the depth chart; even the starting guard spots are starting to come into focus. Still, with the regular season fast approaching, Baltimore is going to need to make some decisions down the stretch.

At running back, the team has an obvious 1-2 punch in Derrick Henry and Justice Hill while they wait for Keaton Mitchell to return from injury. While Mitchell remains on the injured list, though, that leaves the opportunity to fill one more spot on the roster with a running back, though ESPN’s Jamison Hensley acknowledges that they could run with just two until Mitchell returns.

Owen Wright has seemingly been the name to watch for that spot. An undrafted free agent addition out of Monmouth last year, Wright was pushing for a roster spot in the team’s final preseason game today before suffering a hairline fracture in his foot in the contest, per Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, complicating his roster status. While not season-ending, the injury will likely require a stay on an injured list if the Ravens want to keep him on the roster.

This opens the door for fifth-round rookie Rasheen Ali out of Marshall. The Ravens don’t like to get in the habit of waiving rookie draft picks, but after Stanford cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly was failed to make the 53-man roster last year, it seems nobody is safe. Ali hasn’t gotten much use this preseason and failed to appear in today’s preseason game, so it was not looking great for him to make the roster, but Wright’s injury may allow him to do just that.

Here are some breakdowns of other roster battles in Baltimore:

  • Another player who suffered an injury in today’s contest was backup center Nick Samac. The seventh-round rookie out of Michigan State was making a push for the 53-man roster, culminating in a start at center this preseason. While fans saw him carted off the field today, both Hensley and Zrebiec see him making the final cut.
  • At safety, the Ravens have an interesting decision ahead of them. The Ravens have boasted an outstanding record over the years of seeing an undrafted rookie make the 53-man roster, and this year, there doesn’t seem to be an obvious choice. Beau Brade, an undrafted signee out of Maryland, has been a popular option, but there is no guarantee. The team already rosters Kyle Hamilton, Marcus Williams, and Eddie Jackson, as well as rookie seventh-round pick Sanoussi Kane out of Purdue. They also roster Ar’Darius Washington, who may split his time between nickelback and safety. Additionally, the team re-signed veteran Daryl Worley who has played quite a bit on the Ravens defense in the past three years. If Baltimore decides to hold on to five safeties (not including Washington), the decision may come down to the potential of Brade versus the experience of Worley.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/20/24

August 20th, 2024 at 6:47pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor transactions:

Arizona Cardinals

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

  • Reverted to IR: LB Zeke Vandenburgh

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

San Francisco 49ers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Free Agent

Strong was a surprising release by the Cardinals during the regular season last year. At the time, Strong was coming off of his strongest NFL campaign, but head coach Jonathan Gannon claimed that the release was what was “best for the team.” While we still don’t know the nature of the suspension, or whether or not it’s even related to his January release, we are aware that he will miss three games.

Ravens’ Andrew Vorhees, Daniel Faalele On Track For Starting G Spots

August 20th, 2024 at 10:29am CST by Adam La Rose

After Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson departed in free agency, finding replacements at both guard spots was a key offseason priority for the Ravens. The team was quiet on the open market up front, a sign of confidence in the holdovers from the 2023 lineup.

[RELATED: Recapping Ravens’ Offseason]

Andrew Vorhees missed his rookie campaign while rehabbing an ACL tear, but the 2023 seventh-rounder has logged starting reps at left guard throughout training camp. Daniel Faalele – selected as a tackle in the fourth round of the 2022 draft – has likewise received a long look at right guard. With two preseason games in the books, both players appear to have a first-team role locked up.

“I think we’re close,” head coach John Harbaugh said, via Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, when asked about a final call being made at the guard positions (subscription required). “I think we have a pretty good idea and what way it’s trending in different areas. It’s not altogether solidified, but we’re in a good place right now.”

As Zrebiec notes, Vorhees and Faalele got the start during both of Baltimore’s exhibition contests, and the final week of training camp would mark a rather late point in the offseason to experiment with new combinations up front. Free agent pickup Josh Jones has experience at tackle and guard, but his versatility could be put to use as a fill-in option in the event of injuries. 2021 third-rounder Ben Cleveland has seen time at tackle and center this offseason, but he has made only seven starts in his career and appears to be headed for backup duties again in 2024.

Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu – who was added in the sixth round of last year’s draft and did not see the field as a rookie – represented another potential competitor for a guard spot. Zrebiec writes that the Oregon alum finds himself on the roster bubble as cutdown season approaches, however. That is another sign Vorhees and Faalele should find themselves working on either side of Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum come the start of the regular season.

Vorhees, 25, won the Morris Trophy in his final college season as the Pac 12’s top offensive lineman. He was also a first-team All-American in 2022, so he will face high expectations this year assuming he returns to full health after the ACL tear. Faalele, by contrast, was added as a long-term project. The 6-8, 380-pound Australian has logged only 356 offensive snaps in two years, and he has not drawn strong PFF reviews with respect to pass protection or run blocking to date. A move inside could help lead to needed development at the NFL level as he enters the final two seasons of his rookie contract.

The Ravens will be without longtime offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris for the foreseeable future due to an unspecified illness. As the team prepares to move forward without him in place, along with Simpson or Zeitler (the latter of whom earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2023) along the interior, the play of their replacements will be a key factor in determining the offense’s success. While changes could be made between now and Week 1, Baltimore’s new-look guard tandem appears to be set.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/13/24

August 13th, 2024 at 7:42pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

  • Waived-injured: WR Bryan Thompson

Carolina Panthers

  • Released from IR (with injury settlements): OT J.D. DiRenzo, TE Curtis Hodges

Denver Broncos

  • Re-signed: LB Alec Mock

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

  • Signed: LB Chris Russell
  • Released from IR (with injury settlement): CB Don Callis

Los Angeles Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

New Orleans Saints

  • Signed: CB Kaleb Ford-Dement
  • Waived: RB Zander Horvath
  • Released from IR (with injury settlement): WR Jermaine Jackson

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Seattle Seahawks

  • Released from IR (with injury settlement): NT Matthew Gotel
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