Baltimore Ravens: Give DeMeco Ryans a Call
By Joe Serpico
The Baltimore Ravens have failed to add an inside linebacker after releasing Daryl Smith earlier this offseason. Could DeMeco Ryans be an option?
Ozzie Newsome has been aggressive this offseason in addressing most of his team’s needs. They added veterans in Mike Wallace, Eric Weddle and Ben Watson. The Ravens exited the 2016 NFL Draft with a decent draft class in which the main focus was adding pass rushers and protecting Joe Flacco.
They addressed every position but one critical one: inside linebacker.
When the team decided to part ways with Daryl Smith, a huge hole was left on defense. Smith totaled over 100 tackles in each of his three seasons in Baltimore, and was arguably the most consistent player on that side of the ball over that span. He was the anchor of a defense that just lost Ray Lewis to retirement and helped mold C.J. Mosley into a professional.
With him gone, Albert McClellan is the veteran of the inside linebackers. Mosley and Zachary Orr are entering their third season, and Arthur Brown is in his fourth year with the club. Orr and McClellan were both undrafted free agents, while Brown has been a bust since being selected in the second round of the 2013 draft. That leaves Mosley as the only sure thing at the position.
The free agent market is not littered with inside linebackers, but there is one player that caught my eye when looking through the group and that is former Houston Texans and Philadelphia Eagles linebacker DeMeco Ryans.
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Ryans has been a good ball player ever since entering the NFL. He’s been a starter since entering the league in 2006, starting 139 of a possible 160 regular season games. Only twice in his career has he started fewer than eight games, both injury-riddled seasons. However, he missed 10 games over the past two seasons due to injury and with the Eagles switching back to 4-3 defense, he was no longer needed in Philly.
Why have the Ravens not given him a call yet? He fits the bill of what this team needs.
Ryans has played in a 3-4 defense for much of the latter part of his career. He was a two-time Pro Bowler with the Texans, before they made the switch to a 3-4 under Wade Phillips. The next season, the Texans sent him to the Eagles, who were still a 4-3 defense under Andy Reid. He made 86 tackles in his first season in Philly,
When Chip Kelly was introduced, he said the Eagles would switch to a 3-4 defense. Many wondered if Ryans could make the switch from a traditional inside backer to the 3-4 scheme, but he made the move seem effortless by racking up 102 tackles in his first season in the system.
The last two seasons were not as statistically rewarding for Ryans, but injuries played a factor in the drop in numbers. And while Ryans is not the best cover linebacker, he makes more plays in the passing game than Smith, who became a liability in coverage.
The Ravens could use a veteran presence in the heart of the defense. They brought in Smith as he was entering the season as a 31-year old, and he was highly productive. Ryans is currently the same age, and to further sweeten the deal for Ozzie, he’s another former Alabama alum. We all know how much he loves his Bama boys.
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This is purely speculation on my part, but there is not much out there that could help the Ravens. Someone needs to play next to Mosley, and at this point, it’s looking like it’s going to be Orr. Ryans is one of the few free agent linebackers available that could step on to the field right away.