Ravens named best position group in NFL in 2 key areas despite crazy offseason

The Baltimore Ravens not only have one of the best quarterbacks in the league in reigning league MVP Lamar Jackson, but their roster is so deep that even an offseason full of untimely departures wasn't enough to knock them off their very select pedestal at the top of the AFC.

While this roster isn't perfect due to their unsettled offensive line and below-average collection of wide receivers, the Ravens are as strong as any team in the league in a few areas. Mark Andrews and Justin Tucker are leading the way for some of Baltimore's best positional groupings.

Sports Illustrated's Matt Verderame said Baltimore has the best tight end room in the entire NFL, as the continued excellence of Lamar Jackson's safety blanket in Andrews and the emergence of Isaiah Likely last year has them head and shoulders above the rest of the league.

Despite the fact that future Hall of Fame kicker Tucker missed more kicks than Ravens fans are accustomed to seeing from him, Verderame also declared that Tucker is the best kicker in the league over competition from Kansas City's Harrison Butker and Dallas' Brandon Aubrey.

Baltimore Ravens have best tight end, kicker rooms in NFL, per SI

Even with the injuries slowing him down in recent years, Andrews is one of the best receiving tight ends in the game. He and Zay Flowers will once again enter the year as Jackson's top receiving targets, though Likely is continuing to emerge as a player worthy of starting-caliber snaps.

Likely's 2023 was more impressive than his raw totals of 30 catches for 411 yards and five touchdowns sound. If you take his numbers from the last six games of the season (when Andrews was hurt) and extrapolate it out to a full 17-game stretch, Likely was on pace to tally 60 catches, 912 yards, and 14 touchdowns.

Tucker had his first non-All-Pro season since 2015 last year, as he missed five field goals and converted just one from greater than 50 yards. Even with that slight decline in production, most teams around the league would instantly swap their kicker out for Tucker if they were given the chance.

The Ravens are in a position to compete for yet another shot at going to the Super Bowl, but they won't be able to do so unless Andrews, Likely, and Tucker all live up to their full potential in 2024.