Training camp and preseason are now complete, and with it comes one of the NFL’s toughest days. On Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, 1,184 NFL players will lose their jobs and their careers will depend on the opportunity to make the practice squad. But that means 1,696 players will make the roster. Here are my final predictions on the Ravens’ 53-man roster.
Attack (24)
Quarterbacks (2): Lamar Jackson, Josh Johnson
In the end, the quarterback department ended up with the expected outcome. The Ravens will keep Johnson as their primary backup and hope to bring back rookie Devin Leary as a practice squad candidate. The Ravens prefer to have only two quarterbacks on the roster, and the NFL’s new rule allowing an emergency game-day quarterback to come off the practice squad an unlimited number of times only supports that logic.
Leary still has a long way to go, but a year of development with quarterback coach Tee Martin could help him make his decision.
Running backs (2): Derrick Henry, Justice Hill
If Owen Wright hadn’t broken his foot in Saturday’s final preseason game, he would be a sure bet for the 53-man roster. Instead, he could miss the season. Although head coach John Harbaugh announced that the injury is not season-ending, the Ravens may not see the point in nominating him as a returner. Teams can only use two of them, and cornerback Arthur Maulet will likely be one of them.
While the Ravens could keep rookie Rasheen Ali, I can see them wanting to retain players elsewhere and using practice squad provisions to bring in Ali and one of Chris Collier or John Kelly to start the season. After all, with Derrick Henry and Justice Hill, the Ravens don’t need a third running back.
Wide Receivers (6): Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, Nelson Agholor, Tylan Wallace, Deonte Harty, Devontez Walker
Any chance that an undrafted rookie or signed veteran could displace Wallace was dashed when Wallace delivered a good training camp and an excellent preseason, capped off with a 48-yard touchdown against the Packers.
An alternative to the above option would be to place rookie Walker on the injured list, as he has been battling a rib injury all preseason, and keep one of Anthony Miller, Keith Kirkwood or Dayton Wade, but the hope is that Walker can get healthy and develop into the playmaker he was at North Carolina.
Harty is one of my last roster spots as he didn’t show enough of his return skills in the preseason. Perhaps we can expect more from him in the regular season?
End of penalty area (4): Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, Charlie Kolar, Patrick Ricard
The Ravens tight end unit is one of the most steadfast in the NFL. They have their guys and unless a superstar pops up on their radar, that won’t change. However, Qadir Ismail will be a player to keep an eye on as the Ravens would like to keep him for further development. He has made amazing progress this offseason as he moved up from wide receiver to tight end.
Offensive Linemen (10): Ronnie Stanley, Andrew Vorhees, Tyler Linderbaum, Daniel Faalele, Roger Rosengarten, Patrick Mekari, Sala Aumavae-Laulu, Josh Jones, Nick Samac, Ben Cleveland
Samac’s injury is a scandal as it is unclear if he had to be carried off the field due to his injury on Saturday. However, the Ravens need to build their offensive line and I believe they will take 10 players as they want to take any chance they can to find a player who is a true starter. And if not, they could consider a rotation strategy to be successful.
The last spots on this list, Samac (before injury), Aumavae-Laulu, Cleveland, and a few others like Darrian Dalcourt and Tashawn Manning, are all potential cuts or retention spots. None of them are currently guaranteed to be on the roster or not.
Defense (26)
Defensive Linemen (5): Justin Madubuike, Michael Pierce, Travis Jones, Broderick Washington, Brent Urban
The chances of another player making it onto this list were slim, but it was possible. After all, Pierce made the roster that way in 2016. But none of the underdogs ever delivered such good results, which led to the expected happening.
Full-backs (5): Kyle Van Noy, Odafe Oweh, David Ojabo, Tavius Robinson, Adisa Isaac
IR: Malik Hamm
The Ravens have publicly stated that they want to keep Hamm before he suffered a season-ending ACL tear. Now that he’s out, the Ravens are filling his spot with Isaac, a Penn State product. He missed the last preseason game due to a hamstring injury in his other leg that kept him out for most of training camp. It’s unclear how long that will keep Isaac out. They could use an IR-DTR on him, but he could be back up to speed in a few weeks.
Centre-backs (5): Roquan Smith, Trenton Simpson, Chris Board, Malik Harrison, Josh Ross
The two starting spots were set and solidified months ago when Simpson showed his potential, leaving only backup and special teams linebacker spots available. Due to preseason injuries, Ross was on my list. He was the player I went back and forth with the most. The Ravens like him, but it’s questionable whether they’ll keep a fifth inside linebacker. But with new special teams plays, both he and Board are on my list and have cut their teeth on those roles.
Cornerbacks (5): Marlon Humphrey, Brandon Stephens, Nate Wiggins, Jalyn Armour-Davis, TJ Tampa
IR: Arthur Maulet, Trayvon Mullen
The biggest factor in Armour-Davis’ inclusion on the roster wasn’t his play. He was good when he was on the field. His problem was staying on the field. Having held out throughout the offseason and preseason, Armour-Davis will be a Raven on Tuesday night. The same can’t be said for Damarion Williams, who also escaped healthily but was way too late on the field on Saturday, suggesting he probably won’t make the 53-man roster.
His chances increased when Maulet underwent arthroscopic knee surgery, but were quickly dashed when Ar’Darius Washington cemented his place on the roster with excellent play in training camp.
Fuses (6): Kyle Hamilton, Marcus Williams, Eddie Jackson, Sanoussi Kane, Ar’Darius Washington, Beau Brade
My true number 53 is Brade. He’s been the player I’ve debated the most, but I think he’s made enough of a case in the last two preseason games to deserve a spot. Six safeties is a bit over the top, but with Washington essentially filling a nickel corner role, it’s five. Add in Kane and Brade and they could become key special teamers, and the Ravens have their safety unit set up.
Specialists (3): Justin Tucker, Jordan Stout, Nick Moore
The best kicker, an All-Pro snapper and Stout, who had an incredible training camp and preseason, are on the list. No one else ever had a chance.
