Ozzie Newsome Is The Biggest Winner Of NFL Free Agency

Ozzie Newsome is calling some masterful shots. The Baltimore Ravens have gotten better since NFL Free Agency got underway. Here is why “The Oz” is the winner of Free Agency:

Things were looking pretty bleak for Ozzie Newsome. Baltimore had just finished an 8-8 season without a playoff appearance. The Ravens had what seemed like a thousand problems on their roster. The Ravens were set to lose key free agents. A couple really bad drafts were still having lingering effects on the Ravens roster. Before NFL Free Agency got underway, many were questioning if Newsome should still be making the decisions.

Newsome responded with a patient approach as free agency began. The team lost Kyle Juszczyk and Rick Wagner to other teams. Big names were flying around to other teams. Newsome then made a series of calculated moves. He brought in Tony Jefferson, he brought in Danny Woodhead and he brought back Brandon Williams. Now he’s even inked Brandon Carr to a deal.

Now the Ravens can do just about anything with their first round pick. Wide receiver is a desperate need of the team. They also need pass rushers and depth in the secondary would be a good thing to add. The offensive line is a major question mark as well. Before the start of free agency, the Ravens had too many problems to fix in the NFL Draft. Now, Newsome can manage to fill all the Ravens holes with a good draft.

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This is actually the start of a second great offseason. The Ravens drafted Ronnie Stanley, Alex Lewis and Tavon Young in 2016. These are three key pieces of the Ravens future. Now that the Ravens parted with Rick Wagner and Jeremy Zuttah, Stanley and Lewis are even more important to the strength of the roster. Adding Eric Weddle and Mike Wallace was hugely beneficial to the Ravens.

Newsome made more mistakes than we’re used to seeing after the Ravens won their second Super Bowl. He was nearly flawless for so many years, which is why our expectations were so high in the first place. The Ravens contending for a playoff spot was a regular occurrence. Now Newsome is showing us that he isn’t done.

Next: Ozzie Newsome Draft Grades

He never used to be aggressive in free agency, because he didn’t have to be. He had misses in the draft, but he always had more successful picks than bad. From 2013-2015 he went on a bit of a drafting slump and it really hurt the team. Newsome understood that he had to solve problems in free agency, and that’s exactly what he has done. Every time we doubt this man, he makes us look foolish. If he completes a second consecutive great offseason the Ravens could be winners again. This means Newsome is the real winner of the NFL Free Agency period.