With training camp about a month away, NFL teams are still addressing potential holes in their rosters and that includes the Baltimore Ravens. One of the areas the Ravens saw a lot of change was along their offensive line.
One analyst believes they still have some work to do before the 2024 season kicks off against the Kansas City Chiefs. Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder covered “Every NFL Team’s To-Do List for Rest of the 2024 Offseason,” and for the Ravens, the No. 1 thing he listed was “Add a right tackle.”
Holder wrote, “Roger Rosengarten was viewed as more of a swing tackle in Year 1 by the B/R Scouting Department, but he is expected to start at right tackle for the Ravens this season.”
This is starter material for Roger Rosengarten.
The reason for concern here is Rosengarten is a rookie and the Ravens drafted him in the second round of the 2024 draft. Rosengarten has no NFL experience and for a team with championship aspirations this could be a danger.
“Behind him on the depth chart is Daniel Faalele, who hasn’t panned out so far during his short career,” Holder explained.
General manager Eric DeCosta could be looking to bring in a more veteran presence with more snaps under his belt prior to the start of camp.
“It would be a smart investment for the front office to look into bringing in another right tackle who can compete for the starting job and at least provide some insurance if the rookie struggles to begin the year,” Holder wrote.
Ravens Offensive Line Will Feature New Faces in 2024
Quarterback Lamar Jackson will be taking snaps from an offensive line this season that only has 2 out of the 5 starters from 2023.
Left tackle Ronnie Stanley is the veteran on the line and has at times been one of the top tackles in the NFL but that will widely depend on his health. Stanley has dealt with numerous injuries over the last four seasons, and if he cannot stay healthy the Ravens depth will be tested early.
The other returning lineman will be center Tyler Linderbaum, who is turning into one of the top centers in the NFL. The Ravens lost their 2023 starting right tackle Morgan Moses in a trade for salary cap purposes to the New York Jets.
A look at the Ravens offensive line, which is replacing three starters
Guards Kevin Zeitler and John Simpson have also moved on to new teams as well leaving new faces at the guard spot for the Ravens.
OT Patrick Mekari spelled both Stanley and Moses at RT and LT last season, so he is a valuable swing option, but the coaching staff may prefer to keep him spelling Stanley for most of the season.
The Ravens also brought in OT Josh Jones this offseason, but he has struggled to provide consistent production in his NFL career.
Who Could Still Be Available at the Position
On Thursday, June 20 the pickings are slim for GM DeCosta to bring in someone that can be relied on but it’s not impossible. Spotrac’s updated free agent tracker shows there are still some options for the Ravens to approach for a veteran tackle.
While most of the remaining tackles play primarily left tackle, there are a few options that have played both spots.
Former Arizona Cardinals tackle D.J. Humphries is still available after playing exclusively for the Cardinals his whole career. He started his career off at RT before switching over to the left side, which also provides some versatility overall for the coaching staff to use.
Veteran Billy Turner is probably one of the top true RT options left in free agency. The tackle was most recently with the New York Jets, but has played for the Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins and Green Bay Packers as well.
The other option would be to wait until players begin to get released during training camp, but the danger with that is a much shorter window to get acclimated to the team.
