Ravens Lose Kelechi Osemele: 3 Big Things To Think About

2. Osemele Got Overpaid

It isn’t a knock on Osemele to say that he got overpaid. He just did. NFL Networks Ian Rapoport reported that Osemele deal was for $60 million. He isn’t the best guard in the NFL. He wasn’t the best guard on the Ravens. He can play left tackle but that doesn’t mean he should be valued so astronomically. Osemele is a very good football player. He is one of the best in football. The Raiders won a the Osemele sweepstakes but that’s because nobody could have matched that offer.

It will be better to add a few pieces to the puzzle than to keep one big puzzle piece. The Ravens replaced Grubbs, they will replace Osemele too.

Osemele is a pretty injury prone player. It seems that every year he gets banged up. Sometimes we find out that he played through pain (and that explains stretches of lower performance). Osemele has only had one season where he played in all 16 games. In the past two years he missed four games due to injury. In 2013 he only played in 7 games. While that isn’t his fault, it is a bit concerning when you give him that kind of money.

Offensive guards don’t generally make this much money. The Ravens fans wanted Osemele to be a left tackle. That would have merited the insane contract (at least in market value). But the Ravens themselves saw Osemele as a guard. The Raiders got a good player, but not at a good price.

Next: 3. History Repeats Itself