The Baltimore Ravens pass rush room is a mystery. Although they finished second in the league in total sacks last season, the group is looking for consistency in 2025. The team’s 2024 sack leaders, Kyle Van Noy and Odafe Oweh, lead a deep group, but it’s one loaded with young talent still trying to find their way in the league. Baltimore is looking to solve this puzzle, and third-year outside linebacker Tavius Robinson could hold the answer to success this year.
During OTAs, Robinson is crawling out of the shadows. While he only had 3.5 sacks in 2024, the 26-year-old deserves respect, and Pass Rush Coach Chuck Smith is letting everyone know about him.
“Tavius Robinson is everything you look for in a Baltimore Raven. Everyday Tavius Robinson showed up, he sits in the front, he takes notes, he plays hard,” Smith said. “He’s got that dog in him…Tavius Robinson is going to be a bonafide pass rusher and he has the opportunity to have a breakout season.”
Tavius Robinson may be the most underrated defender in Baltimore
Robinson has been held back from the spotlight due to the production of Van Noy and Oweh in 2024, and after the selection of Mike Green in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, everyone is forgetting about the former Ole Miss Rebel.
Robinson is the definition of a grinder. He doesn’t get much love from the media, but Smith’s firm praise at Wednesday's press conference at OTAs proves that Robinson needs to be a Raven for the long haul. And looking at the state of the pass rush group both now and in the future, Robinson has the keys to unlock one of the best pass-rushing units in the NFL.
While the sack numbers aren’t there, Robinson’s aggressiveness makes him a coach’s favorite. He’s yet to come into his own as a pass rusher, but he’s shown improvement as a run defender since college.
In 2024, he graded out as an average edge rusher with a 62.3 grade per Pro Football Focus. While it was nothing flashy, it was an encouraging jump from his rookie season. He’s getting more acclimated to the NFL’s pace and earning more reps with the starting defense.
While Van Noy and Oweh will continue to hog most of the reps as they’re both coming off career years, it sounds like Robinson is inching toward the top of the depth chart. Both the 10-plus sack artists are also in contract years, so the door could be open for Robinson to prove that he’s a future starter off the edge in Baltimore.
At Ole Miss, Robinson took a similar path of growth. He was a late bloomer and finally broke out as a second-year senior with seven sacks. Judging by Smith’s excitement for Robinson’s ceiling in Wednesday’s interview, Robinson could follow a similar trajectory in the NFL. While many question if Baltimore has enough juice in the pass rush room, Robinson could answer those questions with a breakout campaign in 2025.
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