Ravens Have No. 1-Ranked Offensive Triplets
It's hard to argue that the Ravens have one of the most star-studded offensive casts in the league.
Quarterback Lamar Jackson, running back Derrick Henry, and wide receiver Zay Flowers were the catalysts of a Ravens offense last season that led the league in yards and scored 30+ points in 11 games.
The trio took the No. 1 spot in Sports Illustrated’s Matt Verderame’s offensive triplets rankings.
"No team has a better trio than the Ravens," Verderame wrote. "Jackson is a two-time MVP and three-time first-team All-Pro, while Henry is coming off a second-team All-Pro campaign with more than 2,000 yards from scrimmage. In Flowers, Baltimore has a top-end target with 1,059 receiving yards and four touchdowns last season."
The defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles' trio of quarterback Jalen Hurts, running back Saquon Barkley, and wide receiver A.J. Brown was No. 2.
Jackson and Henry also were No. 1 among FOX Sports' top 10 rushing duos, ahead of the Detroit Lions' running back tandem of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery.
"The Baltimore Ravens have finished in the top three in rushing in each of the past seven seasons and first in the past two," FOX Sports.com wrote. "That's what happens when you add Henry to an offense that already includes a two-time NFL MVP in Jackson. Henry, a five-time Pro Bowler, rushed for 1,921 yards and an NFL-high 16 touchdowns on a career-high 5.9 yards per carry in his first year with the franchise (2024). He also led the NFL with 19 carries for 20 or more yards.
"Jackson, who posted a career-high 4,172 passing yards, 41 passing touchdowns and a 119.6 passer rating in 2024, continues to kick up dust, also rushing for 915 yards and four touchdowns. Since 2019, Jackson has averaged 913 rushing yards and five rushing scores per season."
What makes the Ravens' offense even scarier is its depth. Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and Charlie Kolar are the league's best tight end trio; newly extended Rashod Bateman and five-time Pro Bowler DeAndre Hopkins are dangerous wide receivers; and running backs Justice Hill and Keaton Mitchell are quality backups to Henry.
Tyler Linderbaum Ranked League's Second-Best Center
Pro Football Focus continues to roll out its positional rankings. Center was the latest group featured, and Tyler Linderbaum came in at No. 2.
"After three seasons of excellent production at the heart of Baltimore's protection scheme, Linderbaum has proven to be one of the NFL's premier run blockers," PFF’s Mason Cameron wrote. "The Ravens center is particularly adept as a zone blocker, where he has earned a 91.7 PFF run-blocking grade on zone concepts across his career, placing him in the 91st percentile at the position."
Only the Kansas City Chiefs' Creed Humphrey was ranked above Linderbaum.
As noted in Thursday’s Late for Work, Linderbaum's fellow first-round pick in 2022, Kyle Hamilton, was No. 1 in PFF's safety rankings.
Also ranked in the top four in their position groups were: Jackson (No. 3), Henry (No. 1), Andrews (No. 4), and linebacker Roquan Smith (No. 4).
Media Reacts to Bateman's Contract Extension
The Ravens rewarded Bateman for his breakout season by signing the 2021 first-round pick to a three-year contract extension reportedly worth $36.75 million, with $20 million guaranteed.
Here's a look at what pundits said about the move:
The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec: "The extension continues the organization's trend of prioritizing deals with its own players. … Bateman's two-year, $12.8 million extension last April was a result of circumstances that stemmed from the wide receiver not accruing a credited season in 2023 and not being eligible to cash in on the fifth-year option on his rookie deal. Bateman started last year's training camp on the 'did not report list,' which triggered the non-credited season. If he hadn't signed the extension last year, Bateman would have been a restricted free agent this past March. However, the Ravens extended him at an affordable price to give Bateman some security. They then got back to the bargaining table this offseason after Bateman thoroughly outperformed the contract extension."
The Baltimore Banner's Jonas Shaffer: "If you can get this guy who is getting paid well below like a Tee Higgins and you have that locked in, that financial security, then it could be another really great team-friendly deal in the long run. I think he's always going to be a guy who wins with his smarts and his route-running and not necessarily his downfield speed, but if he is able to be as good as he was last year as a downfield receiver and the Ravens haven't really tapped into his skill set in ways that maybe other offenses might – not to say that he's being misused here – then I think there are parts of his game that we haven't seen that he could really age gracefully into."
Russell Street Report’s Nikhil Mehta: "For the Ravens, this is another steal of a WR2 contract for an ascending player who's still only 25 years old and just put together his best season. The three-year, $36.75 million extension is good enough as is, but added onto Bateman's current deal, it becomes a five-year contract worth $47.5M total ($9.5 million per year). That's good value for what Bateman has done so far, and there's plenty of reason to believe his arrow is firmly pointed upward. He's now under contract through 2029 at a price that will help the Ravens navigate other extensions in the next few years. For Bateman, this is another well-deserved pay raise with a second signing bonus in as many years."
Baltimore Beatdown’s Dustin Cox: "I am glad to see the Ravens reward Bateman for such a strong breakout season after injuries derailed the promising start to his NFL career. Bateman and Lamar Jackson finally found a connection last season and it was a beautiful sight to see. Bateman vastly outperformed the previous two-year contract extension he signed last offseason, so it is good that Eric DeCosta was able to get out ahead of any potential disgruntlement by giving Bateman a new deal more in line with his production."
Ebony Bird’s Connor Burke: "By signing the deal, Bateman won't have to think about the possibility of free agency for the foreseeable future. Like last season, he can hit the field and dominate without having other concerns crowd his mind. He came into his own last season, and there are no doubts about his continued and steady growth with the Ravens."
