The Baltimore Ravens reached a crossroads with two of their interior offensive linemen this offseason. Of course, center Tyler Linderbaum received most of the attention upon entering free agency. He signed a massive deal with the Las Vegas Raiders, resetting the market for his position.
But guard Daniel Faalele hasn't been nearly as popular as his former teammate. Weeks into free agency, the veteran still has not reached an agreement with a new team.
As the days go by, the Ravens are looking smarter and smarter for letting him leave.
Daniel Faalele's quiet market vindicates Baltimore Ravens' decision to let him go
Faalele is the kind of player who coaches and fans convince themselves to believe in. He's a physical force at 6'8" and 370 pounds. The Ravens thought that they could develop the former fourth-round draft pick into a long-term starter.
Instead, his poor movement skills made him a liability at times. While the 26-year-old showed flashes of jaw-dropping power, he missed his blocks far too often to justify keeping him around.
After two years of the guard commanding a starting job in Baltimore, it became clear that he wasn't the player fans were hoping for. Instead of signing him to a contract extension, the Ravens are letting him leave in free agency.
While Faalele's 2025 campaign was a disappointment, it was still a major risk for the Ravens to move on from him. Losing two starters on the interior of the offensive line in one offseason can be difficult to recover from, no matter how bad one of them was.
At the end of the day, the decision came down to financial risk. The Ravens could let Faalele continue to develop at an increased price, or they could spend their money on a more proven player. It's already looking like they made the right choice.
Baltimore effectively replaced Faalele with John Simpson in free agency. Simpson, while a bit older and not as physically dominant, is a more reliable player. His three-year, $30 million contract came in around where Faalele's likely would have.
Meanwhile, the rest of the NFL is clearly hesitant to take a chance on the former Ravens starter. Faalele seems to have had no major contract developments since the beginning of free agency. Spotrac estimates that his market value is around $10.5 million per year. Multiple guards around the league have signed for similar numbers this offseason. The league seems to agree with the Ravens on Faalele's value, though. He's not worth it.