Kyle Hamilton Headlines Most Versatile Players List
All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton has been called a Swiss Army Knife and a do-it-all player, so of course he was included on The Athletic’s list of the NFL’s 10 most versatile players.
In fact, Hamilton didn't just make the list; he was hailed as its "poster boy" by The Athletic's Ted Nguyen.
"He was drafted to the perfect team to develop and deploy his skill set," Nguyen wrote. "He does everything well, and Mike Macdonald, who was the defensive coordinator in Baltimore when Hamilton was drafted, had a vision for how to use him. He was a tight end eraser, could cover slots decently and was a monster against perimeter runs and screens. Macdonald's system is at its best when he can move his players all around his defense, and Hamilton can line up everywhere in the second and third levels and excel."
Hamilton continued to excel in 2024 under first-year Defensive Coordinator Zach Orr.
"When the Ravens defense was struggling last season, Hamilton had to stay deep at free safety more to stop teams from beating them over the top," Nguyen wrote. "After giving up 41 points to the Buccaneers and 29 points to Cleveland's listless offense, Hamilton lined up deep on 56 percent of snaps from Weeks 9-18 — an increase of 32 percent from his deep alignment rate from Weeks 1-8. He almost immediately solidified the secondary and stopped the hemorrhaging.
"Obviously, Hamilton wasn't the sole reason the defense improved, but he was a big part of it. For Hamilton, who played most of his snaps near the line of scrimmage, to effortlessly transition into a mostly deep player shows his immense value. There aren't many players in the league who can shut down the perimeter plays near the line of scrimmage, cover different body types, and then line up in deep zones and take away that part of the field."
Other Than Nate Wiggins, Who Are Ravens' Breakout Candidates?
Second-year cornerback Nate Wiggins is widely regarded as the Ravens' leading candidate for a breakout season, but there are others who could make a leap in 2025.
Ravens Wire’s Glenn Erby identified six players (in addition to Wiggins) poised to break out. Here's a look at two:
OLB Tavius Robinson
"Baltimore has all of its outside linebackers returning, including third-year pass rusher Tavius Robinson. The former Ole Miss pass rusher had 32 tackles (13 solo), including 3.5 sacks, one pass defensed, and 12 QB hits in 17 games last season. Robinson spent the first half of last season in a rotational role at edge rusher, but he did start in the final six regular-season games."
WR Devontez Walker
"Baltimore has a solid trio of Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, and DeAndre Hopkins at the wide receiver spot. Still, injuries happen, and the Ravens would prefer to have Walker elevate his role over Tylan Wallace or rookie LaJohntay Wester. Walker ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, and he'll look to be Lamar Jackson's big-play weapon."
Who Is the Biggest Threat to Ravens in AFC North?
Division titles are not won in July, but the Ravens are heavily favored to capture an unprecedented third straight AFC North championship.
NFL Network analysts Bucky Brooks and Marc Ross were asked which team posed the biggest threat to the Ravens in the division, and they were split in their opinions.
"It has to be the Pittsburgh Steelers," Brooks said. "When you think about Mike Tomlin and the job he's done consistently, the Pittsburgh Steelers are always in the hunt. This year, they're taking an old page out of Michael Jordan's book – the last dance. They've gone all in on the veteran all-stars. You think about Aaron Rodgers coming over, you think about D.K. Metcalf coming over from Seattle. On defense, Darius Slay, Jalen Ramsey. You have the holdovers in T.J. Watt, Cam Heyward. This is a team that is built to win a Super Bowl.
"If they catch lightning in a bottle where everyone is able to stay healthy and the chemistry is right, there is no reason why the Pittsburgh Steelers can't challenge the Baltimore Ravens."
Ross contended that the Cincinnati Bengals are the Ravens' top challenger.
"It's much easier to go into a game and [say] we're going to score 30 and our defense just has to make one stop and we're going to win games," Ross said. "Sometimes their defense didn't make any stops last year, that's why they were where they were. But make one stop to win games. They've got one of the big four quarterbacks in Joe Burrow. They've got the best receiver in the game in Ja'Marr Chase. They've got the best No. 2 receiver in Tee Higgins. They've got Chase Brown, who is a quality running back, and Mike Gesicki, who's a quality tight end. And the best No. 3 wide receiver in Andre Iosivas."
Quick Hits
Yesterday's Most Read: Practice Report: Jaire Alexander and Other Standouts From Day 1 of Training Camp
- The Mile High Miracle was No. 13 in Sports Illustrated’s ranking of the best 25 games of the past 25 years.
