ESPN report: The Baltimore Ravens have officially announced the signing of Atlanta Falcons franchise wide receiver on a 4-year, $109 million deal after they overthrew the Dallas Cowboys in naming him their new signing. As per ESPN, it was confirmed that the Dallas Cowboys officially offered him a $112 million for 4 years deal but was officially turned down by the franchise wide receiver to sign a contract of $109 million with the Ravens due to….
After weeks, if not months, of questions about Ronnie Stanley’s future, the Baltimore Ravens finally locked down their franchise left tackle on Saturday with a three-year, $60 million contract. Re-signing Stanley was easily the Ravens’ top priority this offseason, and they can now check him off their list.
The question now becomes a very common one: what’s next?
Yes, Stanley may have been at the top of the Ravens’ offseason checklist, but they still have several goals beyond just re-signing him. Luckily, they now have the freedom to fully attend to those matters, so it seems appropriate to take a look at what the rest of their offseason could look like.
First, and most importantly, is Baltimore’s salary cap situation after this move. Over the Cap has the Ravens with just over $10.5 million in cap space before Stanley’s deal, so if his cap hit is anywhere near the $20 million per year he’s set to make, they are well over the cap now.
As a result, expect some cuts in the near future to help the Ravens manage their cap space. They could save $11 million against the cap by releasing veteran tight end Mark Andrews, who was already a popular cut candidate before this deal. With Baltimore even tighter on cap space, Andrews’ days in purple and black could be coming to an end.
Second, there’s the rest of free agency. General manager Eric DeCosta all but said that the team wouldn’t be too active in free agency at the combine, and it seems very unlikely that anything has changed on that front. There will likely be some smaller signings, but there probably won’t be any big splashes for the Ravens this offseason, unless Stanley is considered to be one.
Finally, there’s the NFL Draft in April. Re-signing Stanley changed the Ravens’ draft outlook substantially, as many mock drafts had them taking an offensive tackle in anticipation of his departure.
Now that he’s back, they have the freedom to address essentially any other position. The secondary stands out as the biggest remaining need, but really, there would be very few bad options for Baltimore at No. 27 overall.
The offseason has now truly opened up for the Ravens, and how they take advantage of it will go a long way towards deciding their 2025 outlook.
