Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman had a wild offseason. It had many internal rumors and speculation, but he and the team agreed on a $36.75 million extension in June to keep him in Charm City through 2029.
Following the extension, various trade rumors came out, signaling lots of interest in his name. Teams calling Baltimore about the 25-year-old’s services included the Dallas Cowboys, Green Bay Packers, and New England Patriots. But the Ravens eventually shut down all negotiations to keep the 2024 breakout star around.
On an episode of The Lounge Podcast with Ryan Mink and Garrett Downing, Bateman opened up about the roller coaster offseason and how the extension came to be, as he stays loyal to the organization that first believed in him.
“I knew I wanted to be back in Baltimore, but I’ve seen the business, and obviously, you just never know,” Bateman told Mink and Downing. “That’s the first thing I told [Eric] DeCosta in a mature way when we first got on the phone, ‘With all due respect, I want to be here,’ that was the first thing I said. And I think that helped us get to this point where we’re at today.”
Rashod Bateman was born to be a Baltimore Raven
The Ravens do not have much of a history at wide receiver. Sure, some greats have graced the field at M&T Bank Stadium in the purple and black, but none of such receivers have played out their whole career with the Ravens. Bateman could be the first and is also developing into the next great Ravens wideout.
Derrick Mason, Steve Smith Sr., Anquan Boldin, Torrey Smith, and Mike Wallace had great seasons with Baltimore, but none had lengthy tenures. Bateman’s teammate, Zay Flowers, was the first Ravens wide receiver to make the Pro Bowl at the position, and Bateman could soon follow suit. While the targets are scarce because of all the weapons in Baltimore’s offense, Flowers and Bateman are changing the narrative around the history of the team’s wide receivers.
The Ravens are known for running the football and feeding tight ends in the passing attack. However, 2024 changed that thought process. Flowers went for 1,059 receiving yards, and Bateman added 756 and nine touchdowns. The duo are two of the league’s rising receiving threats, and with Bateman now locked in with the team, he cannot wait to help this historic offense grow.
“I think that we will continue to take the next jumps. All the guys here are committed to being better. Coach Monken demands perfection out of us, which goes a long way,” Bateman said. “I just know the offense will continue to evolve in a lot of different ways because we got the players to do that.”
In 2025, Bateman could have another big breakout with contract talks far in the rearview mirror. However, regardless of his stats, he plays like a Raven. The impact is there. He is on track to develop into one of the better Ravens receivers in recent memory and could have one of the longest tenures of any wide receiver to play for Baltimore.