Baltimore Ravens: 2020 Secondary could be legendary

We’ve seen some monstrous secondaries in the history of the NFL and the 2020 Baltimore Ravens unit will look to place itself amongst the best of the best.

The Baltimore Ravens will enter 2020 with one of the league’s most complete rosters from top to bottom. The team has an elite run game coupled with good pass-catching options and a solid offensive line. Captained by the reigning MVP in Lamar Jackson, this offense is primed to be among the best the NFL has to offer. They’re the definition of must-see television.

Baltimore’s defense looks like an amazing unit, too, they just aren’t getting the recognition that the offense is receiving. The front-seven, captained by Pro Bowler Matt Judon, is much improved from a season ago. The pass rush should be drastically more effective and the inside linebacker spot got much better after drafting Patrick Queen in round one of the 2020 NFL Draft.

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The real story here is the Ravens secondary. This fearsome unit has arguably both the league’s best cornerback and safety tandems respectively and return three Pro Bowlers from a year ago. The 2019 version of this secondary was sixth in YPG, allowing an average of 207.2-yards. That unit returns in its entirety and will be even better in 2020.

It all starts with the cornerback duo of Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters, both of whom earned First-Team All-Pro nods for their masterful 2019 seasons. These two clicked unimaginatively well in 10 games together (Peters played the first six games of 2019 with the Los Angeles Rams before being traded to Baltimore), combing for six interceptions and four defensive touchdowns. These two are dogs who love to talk and shut down opposing receivers. They’ll be lights out once again in 2020.

Beyond them is the savvy veteran Jimmy Smith, who has been one of the NFL’s most underrated corners for quite some time. He’ll provide versatility in the secondary as both a boundary cornerback and even a nickel safety. Tavon Young will also return in 2020 after missing all of 2019 with a neck injury. When Young is on the field he’s one of the best nickel corners the league has to offer.

Where things start to really get scary is on the backend of the defense, where seven-time Pro Bowler safety Earl Thomas lurks. Thomas is a ball hawk with 30 career interceptions. While he only recorded two picks in 2019 that had more to do with the fact that quarterbacks avoided throwing his direction at all costs. Thomas is the leader of this unit and one of the captains of the defense as a whole. He’ll once again be a major threat for the unit.

Lost in all the Pro Bowlers above is safety Chuck Clark, who recently led Baltimore in total tackles a season ago. Clark blossomed in a bigger role last season after then-starting safety Tony Jefferson suffered a torn ACL. Clark earned himself a contract extension for his hard work and now goes into 2020 as an underrated player ready to silence any critics he may have.

As you can see, the Baltimore Ravens secondary is absolutely loaded across the board. They will be the biggest reason this defense will flourish in 2020 and have the chance to leave their mark on history.

This edition of the Baltimore Ravens secondary is ferocious. There are alpha-males scattered throughout ready to punish opposing receivers and make quarterbacks pay for throwing their way. As recently as 2015 and 2013 we saw the Denver Broncos “No-Fly Zone” and Seattle Seahawks “Legion of Boom” win Super Bowl titles for their historic play. This Ravens secondary may not have a nickname yet, but it has the potential to be one of the best units we’ve ever seen.