With the Ravens kicking off their 2025 season in three days, we asked 13 defensive players who they think will have a breakout season.
Here are their picks:
S Malaki Starks (5 votes)
CB T.J. Tampa: "He had a very strong camp. He's very focused in meetings and knows what to do, and he's always in the right place."
DT Nnamdi Madubuike: "He's a beast, man. That rookie, man, he's really going to know where the ball's at at all times. He's a ballhawk. He caught a pick [Wednesday] in practice early that set the tone for us on defense."
S Kyle Hamilton: "I think he has star potential, and he has an instinct that you can't teach."
S Reuben Lowery III: "He's a rookie, so expectations are still very, very high. The way he carries himself, the way he comes into practice and works, I think he's going to be very, very, very good."
ILB Teddye Buchanan: "I think [Starks and Mike Green] are really good players. They've shown a lot of really good things in camp, and just seeing the way they work and just seeing the type of guys they are, they have a chance to be really good this year."
OLB Tavius Robinson (2 votes)
ILB Trenton Simpson: "That's a guy who's one of my best friends on the team. I just know the work he puts in. He had a great year last year, but I expect this year to be a crazy jump because I know the work he's put in and I know he's grinding."
ILB Jay Higgins IV: "T-Rob is going to keep killing it. I like how he strikes blocks. [He's] long, everything you want in a D-end. I like his game."
NT Travis Jones (2 votes)
OLB Odafe Oweh: "He's been building up each year, and I feel like this is the year where he really shows people what he's about."
DL Aeneas Peebles: "It's going to be special. That's really the only way I could put it. The work he's put in so far, and me coming in new and just hearing about him last year and how he's improved and the way his game has changed going into this year, man, I'm just excited to see what he does out there."
CB T.J. Tampa (1 vote)
CB Chidobe Awuzie: "He's had a great offseason. I know last year at this time he wasn't able to do camp. This is really like his first real camp. He's healthy, making plays, the technique is there. He's probably touched the ball more than any other defensive player."
ILB Trenton Simpson (1 vote)
OLB Tavius Robinson: "He's been grinding. I think he's had a great camp, great preseason. We've all seen the work he's put in."
CB Keyon Martin (1 vote)
CB Nate Wiggins: "He plays fast, man. Ever since he came in the first day, he's been on it. I think the first week he had a pick. Every day he's been here he's just been on it. I feel like he's ready and ready for the moment."
DL Aeneas Peebles (1 vote)
OLB Mike Green: "He's our pass-rushing specialist for our interior. He's quick, he's fast. He just moves like a defensive end."
