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Baltimore Ravens Receive Positive Grade For Offseason Work

By Brett Foote

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Apr 30, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Breshad Perriman (Central Florida) poses for a photo with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell after being selected as the number twenty-six overall pick to the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

The Baltimore Ravens have had, by and large, a pretty good offseason.  Despite moans and groans about losing the likes of Torrey Smith, Pernell McPhee, and Haloti Ngata, the team has addressed pretty much every need on the roster through the draft and free agency.  Some would argue that they have even gotten better (on paper, at least).

ESPN Insider Mike Sando seems to agree, giving the Ravens a B- grade for their work so far.  ESPN’s Ravens beat writer Jamison Hensley agrees as well, giving the team a B or B-plus (whatever that means). Both are pretty fair considering this is a team that once again stuck to their guns in regards to how they do business.

With a limited amount of cap space, teams like the Ravens must build through the draft.  They simply can’t afford to pay big name free agents, and history has proven this to be a futile exercise anyway.  I would argue that they have potentially upgraded at some positions despite being thrifty spenders.  I feel like the addition of Kendrick Lewis will work out better than the Darian Stewart experiment, for one.

One could also argue that Breshad Perriman is a better prospect than Torrey Smith, and it’s hard to argue that Maxx Williams offers less upside than Owen Daniels does at this stage of his career.  And even though the Ravens don’t hand out big contracts often, they did recognize the need to lock up Jimmy Smith.

Gary Kubiak might turn out to be the team’s biggest loss.  It’s easy to forget just how dramatically the offense turned around from 2013 to 2014, especially the offensive line.  I have faith in Marc Trestman after he worked magic for the Bear’s offense, but can he continue the momentum?

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Many point to the loss of Haloti Ngata as a big problem, but the Ravens were no worse for wear during his four game absence last season.  I’m not denying that his departure is a loss, but I have confidence that the defense can still stuff the run and create penetration without him and his bloated salary.

Every offseason, teams work to improve their rosters.  So the simple question is, did the Ravens achieve that goal?  While the answer isn’t clearly definitive, I think they did a great job sticking to their system. And in case you forgot, it’s a system that works, year in and year out.

Next: Is 2015 Courtney Upshaw's last in Baltimore?

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