Ravens depth chart: Andre Smith, De’Anthony Thomas only opt-outs

The Ravens depth chart has to account for only two players opting out heading into training camp, Andre Smith and De’Anthony Thomas.

The Baltimore Ravens don’t have to worry too much about their roster and depth chart heading into training camp, at least in light of the voluntary NFL opt-out program amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

While a total of 69 players across the league elected to sit out the upcoming season, Baltimore will see only two players, currently, use this window to pass on playing: veteran offensive tackle Andre Smith and wide receiver De’Anthony Thomas.

Smith, 33 years old, joined the Ravens on a one-year, $1.07 million contract during the offseason and was expected to compete for one of the depth spots at tackle behind the starting duo of Ronnie Stanley and Orlando Brown Jr. Fellow linemen Tyre Phillips and Will Holden will likely compete for the immediate swing-tackle role, and it wouldn’t be a shocker to see Baltimore peg someone off the waiver wire to plug the gap.

Thomas, 27 years old, served as the Ravens’ primary return specialist after being signed in November last year. He wasn’t much of a factor on offense, seeing just one touch from scrimmage. But his 7.2-yard punt-return average is something of note.

Baltimore could end up giving return duties to one of their two rookies at wide receiver, Devin Duvernay or James Proche, in a battle likely to be decided during training camp.

Of course, this doesn’t mean Smith and Thomas are going to be the only two Ravens players opting out this season. The league is allowing players to continue opting out beyond the Aug. 6 deadline, provided a new medical condition arises or if a direct family member winds up being hospitalized or passes away as a result of COVID-19 or suffers from a related condition:

"A player can still opt out later if one of the following applies: if that player gets a new diagnosis that he has a high-risk condition; or if a player’s family member dies, is hospitalized or otherwise moves to a medical facility because of COVID-19 or related condition."

This would classify as a high-risk situation for players, so one shouldn’t assume Baltimore’s roster is automatically going to stay put or merely change for the otherwise normal transaction wire.

But for the positives, neither Smith nor Thomas were pegged to be major contributors to the offense in 2020, although their respective opt-outs do open up some additional camp battles while leaving some question marks about the depth.

Training camp officially started for Baltimore on July 28.