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Baltimore Ravens should target Pierre Garcon in free agency

By Ben Palmer

Jan 1, 2017; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garcon (88) runs with the ball as New York Giants linebacker Devon Kennard (59) attempts the tackle in the fourth quarter at FedEx Field. The Giants won 19-10. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 1, 2017; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garcon (88) runs with the ball as New York Giants linebacker Devon Kennard (59) attempts the tackle in the fourth quarter at FedEx Field. The Giants won 19-10. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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One of the many needs for the Baltimore Ravens this offseason is at the wide receiver position. Free agent Pierre Garcon would fulfill that need very well.

The Baltimore Ravens have a lot of needs this offseason, in fact it’s almost overwhelming how many different positions the Ravens need to address.

We covered the top five needs for the Ravens this offseason, and one of the biggest is at the wide receiver position. With the retirement of Steve Smith, the Baltimore Ravens have a big gap in the number one receiver spot.

The next up for that spot would logically be Mike Wallace, who finished the year with his first 1,000 yard season since 2011, but trusting Wallace as a number one receiver is difficult.

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The only other logical candidate after Wallace would be Breshad Perriman, but he’s struggled, and his limited route tree makes trusting him as a number one receiver even more difficult.

So what do the Ravens do? They could draft someone like Corey Davis or Mike Williams, assuming they fall to them, but there are other needs (see: linebacker) the team needs to address more urgently in the draft.

That’s why Pierre Garcon makes a lot of sense for the Ravens. Baltimore has been a home for a lot of older possession receivers that complement our quicker, slightly more limited receivers.

Derrick Mason, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Smith all found homes in Baltimore in that role, and Pierre Garcon would seem like a logical continued step in that tradition.

Garcon has shown he can still play well in the NFL, racking up 79 catches for 1,041 yards and three touchdowns for the Washington Redskins last season. That yardage total was his best since 2013 when he caught 113 balls for 1,346 yards.

Garcon is also consistent. Since 2013, he has the sixth-most catches in the NFL with 332, and has averaged 979 receiving yards per year. His skills as a possession receiver would complement Wallace and Perriman very well.

The other appealing thing about Garcon is that he likely won’t command a huge contract, certainly not what fellow free agents Alshon Jeffery or Brandon Marshall would get.

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Pierre Garcon fits the Baltimore Ravens needs both from a talent perspective and from a practical, financial perspective, and it’s why the Ravens should make a point to target the 30-year-old receiver once free agency in the NFL begins on March 9th.

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