Baltimore Ravens: Secondary May Create Surprising Position Battles
Sep 21, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns wide receiver
Miles Austin(19) against Baltimore Ravens cornerback
Asa Jackson(25) after a pass reception during the fourth quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Ravens won 23-21. Mandatory Credit: Ron Schwane-USA TODAY Sports
The Baltimore Ravens have a lot of interesting position battles come training camp. We’ve talked about the close ones and more interesting ones, but what about the ones that will be the most surprising?
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The secondary suffered last season due to injuries, and the team used the offseason to help deepen the roster. They added cornerbacks Kyle Arrington and Cassius Vaughn and safety Kendrick Lewis, who are all in a position to start.
They create a very interesting position battle in the secondary, spanning the cornerbacks and safeties. The team already has Lardarius Webb, Jimmy Smith and Asa Jackson at the cornerback position. With the two additions, the position becomes one of the deepest on the team.
Cornerbacks Rashaan Melvin and Tray Walker are going to have to work much harder to make the roster. Webb and Smith are essential roster locks, so it will be difficult for both young players to make the team.
Walker is a rookie, so his ability to outperform the veteran Vaughn is going to test him. They both are coming to the Ravens this year, so how either one or both make the team is going to be very interesting.
The cornerback position may be one of the deepest positions, which is going to make the deciding process much harder.
BaltimoreRavens.com editor and writer Sarah Ellison has Walker making the roster over the veteran. It is an interesting choice, and with Vaughn’s lack of starting experience, the rookie could very well make the roster over the former Mississippi player.
The safety position is even more interesting than the cornerbacks are. This position does not have quite as much depth. The Ravens added only Lewis, so they are must be betting on Matt Elam to step up, and Terrence Brooks starting the season healthy.
If the second-year player out of Florida State starts the season on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list, the Ravens are going to be very thin at the safety position. Will Hill and Lewis are going to be the starters, but the players behind them is still very fluid.
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The team needs Elam to come through on the promise he has been showing during the offseason. If he can bring back the level of play from his rookie season, the safety position will be that much better.
His storyline is going to make the position battle behind the starting safety that much more interesting and the ending result could surprise us all. The Ravens need depth at the position, so they cannot risk injuries hurting the defense again.
Depending on how Brooks recovers from his injury and Elam steps up as a player, the safety position especially could provide very surprising results. The cornerbacks may end up being one of the deepest positions on the team.