The Baltimore Ravens have released veteran linebacker Daryl Smith. Smith was a very solid linebacker for the Ravens in the past three seasons. According to a report by Adam Schefter this frees $2.6 million in cap space.
What does this mean for the 2016 Ravens? It means that a quality player is gone and somebody has to fill the void. This is now the time for Arthur Brown, who was the Ravens second round pick in 2013, to shine. Brown has been struggling to get on the field.
This also changes things going into the 2016 NFL Draft. Could UCLA linebacker, Myles Jack now be an option for the Ravens with the sixth overall pick? It is surely an intriguing idea to have the speed of C.J. Mosley and Jack in the middle of their defense. With Smith on the roster this seemed like an unlikely pick; now it is at least a feasible option.
The Ravens cut a solid player for what looks like $2.6 million in salary cap relief. It’s a frustrating move at least it is immediately. The Ravens are obviously brewing something over in the castle. If the plan ends up retaining Kelechi Osemele or puts a big addition on the team, it will be easy to get over.
For now we just have to wait to see what happens. In the past two days the Ravens have cleared about $8.5 million dollars in cap space. If Ozzie Newsome and Eric DeCosta want to make anything big happen this offseason, more moves are yet to come.