2019 Ravens: Bradley Bozeman was pleasant surprise of the year

Bradley Bozeman earned the starting left guard spot for the Baltimore Ravens and it turning out well was the most pleasant surprise of 2019:

Going into the season it would have been hard to expect that Bradley Bozeman would be the starting left guard. He was a sixth round pick from Alabama at the center position. He was going into his second season in the NFL. Once Jermaine Eluemunor was traded, and the preseason was winding down, Bozeman came away with the job.

There were some rough moments for him in the early going. The fourth game of the season against Pittsburgh was memorable. He had a bad day as a pass protector and Lamar Jackson paid the price for it. The reason that game is memorable though is that it was the last time Bozeman gave the Ravens a reason to worry about the left guard spot for the rest of the year.

It wasn’t exactly surprising that the purple and black could run the football well. When Lamar Jackson took the starting quarterback job over from Joe Flacco, the make-shift offense was all about the run. The Lamar Jackson effect, an awesome running back trio and Greg Roman meant the run game was always going to be front and center in the Baltimore attack.

For the Ravens to break a record for the most rushing yards in a season, the offensive line couldn’t be a problem. The left guard position was the biggest mystery in training camp and it was the position the Ravens had the least compelling answers for all offseason. James Hurst, hard pass. Ben Powers was a third day draft pick who was far from the most polished option. Even with all of this being true, Bozeman getting the start against the Miami Dolphins raised some eyebrows.

Bozeman was a center at Alabama, and he didn’t leave fans with that big of an impression coming into the season. Lamar Jackson exceeded expectations, yet it wasn’t surprising to me that he was a dynamic play-maker. Chuck Clark taking over for Tony Jefferson and being an upgrade was a nice surprise. It still would have been a preseason prediction that would have gotten taken more seriously than Bozeman being a quality option at left guard.

The left side of the offensive line was absolutely phenomenal for most of the season. Ronnie Stanley in conjunction with Bozeman was a very solid duo to run behind. The Ravens had two Pro Bowl tackles. Marshal Yanda is a future Hall of Fame member. Matt Skura got injured and Pat Makari came into the game and the Ravens didn’t miss a beat.

Bozeman gets the least amount of credit. This is not something I expected to write at the beginning of the season. I still was hesitant to get excited about what Bozeman brought to the table in the first quarter of the season. It’s a surprising outcome to the season, Bozeman is a stud. He’s a young player who will only get better.

With Bozeman, the Ravens show the value of drafting well deep into their big board. The Ravens let him develop as a rookie and got him ready to become a full-time starter in his second season. Jackson is the biggest story, yet don’t forget about how good the offensive line was. Bozeman quietly had a year better than anybody expected.