Ravens Acquire CB Josh Wilson

Sorry folks, the noticeable lack of posting is due to time crunch issues, but we’re back tonight with some exciting news.

The Ravens have acquired cornerback Josh Wilson from the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a 2011 draft pick that has not been agreed upon as of this moment. In all likelihood, it will turn out to be a conditional draft pick, meaning that based on Wilson’s performance this season, a logical pick would be traded back to the Seahawks. After losing Domonique Foxworth to a torn ACL, having Walt Harris placed on IR, and waiting for Lardarius Webb to fully recover from his torn ACL of last season, the Ravens’ cornerback corps was looking extremely weak. After adding a 5’9″ cornerback, it’s looking just a tiny bit better. (Catch the pun?)

More info about Wilson and what he’ll bring to the Ravens after the jump.

After crafting a very strong career with the Terps at Maryland, Wilson was a guy who many experts believed the Ravens would take a good, long look at the 5’9″ cornerback who ran his 40-yard dash in 4.39 seconds at the 2007 NFL Combine, but claimed he stayed around the 4.2 range often. The Seattle Seahawks drafted Wilson in the second round in 2007, projecting him to be a good contributor in the secondary and an even better return man.

Wilson has proven to be just that and more in his three seasons with Seattle. In his rookie season, Wilson played 12 games and started none of them, but averaged 27 yards per kick return, returned one to the house, and forced a fumble on defense. In 2008, Wilson’s second season, he led the NFL in kick returns and total kick return yardage, started 12 games on defense, and had four interceptions. Last year, Wilson won the starting job and started 12 games yet again, fighting all season against a nagging high ankle sprain. Regardless, Wilson was a pretty big contributor on defense, intercepting two passes and returning both of them for touchdowns.

In his short career, Wilson has a very respectable line of 24 starts, 116 tackles, 6 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles, 3 defensive touchdowns and a kick return average of 25 yards. If the Ravens want to use Wilson for all he’s worth, we could see him starting alongside Fabian Washington as Lardarius Webb recovers, and possibly returning kicks. He’s arguably among the NFL’s best at returning kicks, and especially if Webb comes back quickly, his impact could be very welcome at the position. Putting aside speculation, Wilson is by any argument, a very solid pickup for the Ravens. They had an urgent, pressing need, and filled it with an experienced NFL player who’s versatile, young, and has room to grow. Throw in the fact that he’s local and lightning-fast, and you’re looking at a move that will sit very well with the fans.