Baltimore Ravens' Blueprint for Winning Free Agency
NFL free agency will begin next week, and the Baltimore Ravens could be making several game-changing moves that will affect their ability to contend for a Super Bowl next season.
After narrowly losing to the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots in the divisional round of the playoffs, Baltimore is on the verge of becoming a true championship contender if it can win the offseason.
That requires winning free agency, and over the ensuing slides, I'll lay out the moves Baltimore can make to win it. It's not as simple as signing X players, though, as the Ravens sit just $4.3 million above the salary cap, per Over the Cap.
That means Baltimore will have to make several moves with its players currently under contract before it's able to sign the guys it needs in free agency.
With that said, here's my blueprint for Baltimore to win free agency.
Restructure Haloti Ngata's Contract
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First thing's first.
Baltimore isn't signing anyone before it redoes several of its current players' contracts, the biggest of which is All-Pro defensive lineman Haloti Ngata.
This past season Ngata was moved to defensive end and finished the year No. 9 out of 47 qualified defensive ends, via Pro Football Focus.
Ngata has been a force on the defensive line wherever he's started at, but his cap hit this year is $16 million, per Spotrac. That's crippling Baltimore's efforts to re-sign its own players as well as pursue other free agents.
According to Aaron Wilson of The Baltimore Sun, the Ravens are trying to restructure Ngata's deal in order to lower his '16 cap hit. General manager Ozzie Newsome is trying to work some magic in order to put his team in position to contend for another title, something Baltimore has won twice under his watch.
""We will exhaust every avenue that we have to retain our players," Newsome said. "We like to retain our football players, and we also like to be able to create some cap room."
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The Ravens will make every attempt to restructure Ngata's contract and lower his cap hit before free agency opens.
If they're able to do this, it will go a long way in helping the team re-sign its key free agents and contend for the Super Bowl next season.
Get Lardarius Webb to Take a Paycut or Else
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Baltimore could be forced into a tough decision that results in it parting with cornerback Lardarius Webb this offseason.
Webb was once a great defender for the Ravens, but since tearing his ACL in 2012 he's never again looked like his former self.
This past year Webb finished with the fourth-worst grade of any Baltimore defender, according to Pro Football Focus. PFF also ranked him 41st out of 54 corners who played in at least 60 percent of their team's defensive snaps.
Needless to say, Webb isn't worth the $12 million cap hit he's set to count for in 2015, per Over the Cap. The Ravens can save $8 million if they designate Webb a post-June 1 cut.
It would be a tough call to make, but the Ravens cannot keep Webb at his current salary in 2015 if they want to be players in free agency.
It's not unheard of for an underperforming corner to take a paycut. Last year, the Pittsburgh Steelers convinced Ike Taylor to take a $4.25 million pay cut for the 2014 season.
Baltimore needs to push Webb to do the same or tell him to take a hike.
Re-Sign Justin Forsett
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Running back Justin Forsett was arguably the MVP of the Ravens offense this past season after finishing fifth in rushing yards with 1,266 yards.
Forsett was a big reason Baltimore improved from 30th in rushing offense in 2013 to No. 8 this past year. He was also a viable pass-catcher with 44 catches for 263 yards and was solid in pass protection as well.
However, Forsett signed just a one-year contract this past offseason after it was expected he'd back up Ray Rice, who was later suspended and cut.
Getting Forsett re-signed should take priority over pursuing any other free agent. He simply was too important to Baltimore's offense to let go after one year.
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Re-Sign Owen Daniels
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Tight end Owen Daniels played a big role in Baltimore's offensive success in 2014, catching 56 passes for 638 yards and five scores in 16 games.
He became the full-time starting tight end after Dennis Pitta went down with a season-ending hip injury, and it's still unclear if he'll be able to resume his football career.
According to BaltimoreRavens.com, the team might not know his status until the summer, which makes re-signing Daniels even more of a priority.
He may end up remaining the full-time starter next year if Pitta's hip injury ends his NFL career. This increases Daniels' value to Baltimore and should ultimately help lead the two sides to work out a deal.
Re-Sign Will Hill
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The safety position was one of the Ravens' weaker positions in 2014, and they'd be smart to sign a new guy in free agency.
Jeromy Miles and Darian Stewart are set to hit free agency after starting a combined 18 games and playing a total of 1,117 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.
After James Ihedigbo left in free agency and Matt Elam regressed in his second NFL season, it was Will Hill who came on to get a heavy number of snaps down the stretch.
Per Pro Football Focus, Hill played in 724 snaps and started in 10 of Baltimore's final 12 games, including the playoffs. His 13.6 grade was the seventh best of any Ravens defender, but he's now set to be a restricted free agent this offseason.
That means Baltimore can match any offer that's made for him, and there shouldn't be a deal he's offered the Ravens should not match.
Hill was simply too important to the Ravens defense down the stretch last year as they sneaked into the playoffs and made some noise once they got there.
Sign Mike Adams
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As mentioned before, the safety position was one of the Ravens' weaknesses in 2014, and they'd be smart to sign a new guy in free agency.
Indianapolis Colts safety Mike Adams would be a great addition to Baltimore's secondary, and he's arguably the best safety hitting the market.
He was Pro Football Focus' No. 7 safety this past season while grabbing five interceptions and registering 87 tackles.
However, because Adams turns 34 in March teams are going to be hesitant to give him a big contract. This could allow a team like the Ravens to swoop in and sign him to a manageable deal.
Adams could be the missing link that makes the Ravens defense elite and one that will contend for a Super Bowl.
Sign Cecil Shorts
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The Ravens appear likely to lose Torrey Smith in free agency, so they'll have to find another guy capable of replacing his production, which is no easy task.
In 64 career games, Smith has 213 catches for 3,591 yards (16.9 YPC) and a franchise-record 30 touchdowns. However, the Ravens routinely find value players in free agency who go on to become impact players in Baltimore.
Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Cecil Shorts may end up being the best value at wide receiver to hit the market this offseason.
After catching 122 passes for 1,756 yards and 10 scores from 2012-2013, Shorts recorded just 53 receptions for 557 yards and one score for the Jaguars in 2014.
Injuries cost the 27-year-old three games while he also played with rookie quarterback Blake Bortles throwing him the ball. Having Joe Flacco as his quarterback would dramatically improve his production.
For his career, Shorts has 176 catches for 2,343 yards (13.0 YPC) and 12 scores in 50 games. He's no Torrey Smith, but it wouldn't be a big drop-off from Smith either.
If the market doesn't develop for Shorts, Baltimore should be able to get him signed to a cheap contract while he becomes a primary pass-catcher for Flacco in 2015.
Shorts isn't going to be Baltimore's long-term answer as a No. 1 receiver. Getting that in free agency doesn't seem realistic for the Ravens at this point with their cap situation.
However, getting a guy like Shorts will ensure their offense doesn't take a step back in 2015 while they'll likely spend a high draft pick on a receiver this year.
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