2019 Baltimore Ravens: 3 goals for Michael Pierce
2. Become more of a pass rusher:
The Ravens are hoping that Willie Henry can stay healthy this season, so he can provide the kind of interior pass rush they were hoping to get from Gerald McCoy. McCoy signed with the Carolina Panthers and the Ravens need to push the pocket from the middle didn’t go away. Michael Pierce, who typically plays nose guard for the defense needs to become more of a pass rusher. This is the number one thing he can do to get more money after the 2019 season.
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Pierce only has three career sacks and none of them came in 2018. Pierce is a dominant force up front when he’s in game shape. He’s a run stuffing, space eating, immovable object. The good news for Pierce is that to do this he can play at a rather heavy weight. He’s listed at 309 pounds and if he gets back to that number he should be fine to do what he always has. This is however, the reason that Pierce being overweight is so frustrating. To become a more complete defensive tackle he needs to become quicker, not bulkier.
Pass rush is what gets defensive tackles paid. The Ravens already know what he can do as a space eater. That’s obviously something that is important to the Ravens because they gave Brandon Williams a fat contract for it. If Pierce can have a season where he has three to five sacks and a decent number of quarterback rushes, he will thank himself when he signs his next contract.