The Baltimore Ravens are moving along through their offseason schedule, and up next is OTAs. It’s a golden chance for those looking to claim a roster spot and win position battles, especially for the younger players.
One position group that is seeing a ton of changes is the defensive front. Baltimore has made it a point to boost that area. Off the edge, they’ve added Trey Hendrickson and Zion Young, and on the interior, they brought back Calais Campbell. These improvements could also have some under-the-radar roster fallout, though.
Two players to keep an eye on are second-year defensive lineman Aeneas Peebles and rookie seventh-round pick Rayshaun Benny. They could find themselves fighting for one of the final spots in the rotation, and maybe even on the roster. While fans might not be too concerned with this, it could prove to be important.
Baltimore Ravens could be watching critical position battle go down
Both Aeneas Peebles and Rayshaun Benny have a tough battle to see the field in 2026. The signing of Calais Campbell pushed the young duo a slot down the depth chart, where they were already near the bottom.
With the likes of (hopefully) Nnamdi Madubuike, Travis Jones, and John Jenkins also crowding the room, snaps will be hard to come by. You could throw in Tavius Robinson, as well, who possesses alignment versatility along the defensive front.
So as it stands, Peebles and Benny could be battling it out for one of the final spots with a shot at getting in on rotational action. The loser of the battle could find themselves in that healthy scratch scenario on gamedays, or maybe even get pushed off the 53-man roster as a whole.
Along with all this, Madubuike’s status, although showing signs of optimism, remains uncertain. The Ravens will be extremely careful with his potential return from a neck injury, which could make the battle between Peebles and Benny all the more important.
Of course, the ball is in Peebles’ court. He has that extra year of experience going into his second NFL season and has loads of potential as an interior pass rusher. He possesses a twitch that can quickly present a mismatch for opposing offensive linemen.
However, Peebles also barely saw the field in his rookie campaign. He has to impress the new coaching staff, too. As much as he’s become a fan favorite, the harsh reality is that nothing is guaranteed for him, especially with the added talent on the defensive line.
Benny’s roster spot, on the other hand, is anything but guaranteed. He comes in as a seventh-round selection and one of the last eight picks in the 2026 NFL Draft. But he’s gotten some praise as a draft steal. There’s plenty of reason to believe he’ll make the roster.
The 23-year-old isn’t as explosive as Peebles, but he can collapse the pocket from the interior and hold his own at the point of attack. His connection with head coach Jesse Minter, who coached Benny as a defensive coordinator at Michigan from 2022 to 2023, could give Benny a bit of an advantage.
With most of the starting spots already filled, backend position battles will be interesting to watch. Peebles and Benny should put on a show.
Add us as a preferred source on Google