The Baltimore Ravens have arguably the best secondary in the NFL, and a big reason why is because they aren't paying top dollar for all of their elite defenders quite yet.
One of those players is Kyle Hamilton, who was just named the most underpaid safety in the league.
"The league's best safety is far from its highest-paid safety," Alex Kay of Bleacher Report writes. "Kyle Hamilton proved he is the cream of the crop by excelling at both the free and strong safety positions (as well as some nickel cornerback) during a magnificent 2024 campaign. After opening the year working around the box and covering slot receivers, the 24-year-old then shifted back and continued his excellence in that spot. There's not much Hamilton can't provide on defense for the Baltimore Ravens."
The Ravens selected Hamilton in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, and they're probably still pinching themselves that he was available at the No. 14 overall pick.
Since then, the 24-year-old has racked up 250 tackles (186 solo), seven sacks, four forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, five interceptions, 27 passes defensed and one touchdown while establishing himself as one of the best players at his position.
Hamilton has also earned back-to-back Pro Bowl nods as well as first-team All-Pro honors in 2023 and second-team All-Pro honors in 2024.
He is due for a contract extension very soon as he's entering the fourth year of his rookie deal, and there's a strong belief that he will reset the safety market when that happens.
"The Notre Dame product is clearly one of the game’s elite players and should soon be rewarded as such financially," Kay writes. "Expect Hamilton to build upon the $21 million floor that both Kerby Joseph and Antoine Winfield Jr. recently set with their contract extensions."
For now, however, Baltimore will count its blessings that it only has to pay him about $4 million per year as he gears up for yet another potential NFL Defensive Player of the Year-worthy campaign.
