Ravens Urged to Bolster Secondary With $70 Million NFL All-Pro

If we’re talking about the best NFL players in recent memory who have had the most hard luck situations in terms of their teams, 4-time NFL All-Pro and 2-time Pro Bowl safety Justin Simmons should be toward the top of the list.

Simmons toiled away on the Denver Broncos for 8 seasons and was one of the NFL’s best at his position as his team missed the playoffs every single year before he was released in a cutthroat salary cap move before the 2024 season — and following another All-Pro year.

He found a home with the Atlanta Falcons last season on a 1-year, $7.5 million contract … then watched them stumble and bumble their way to an 8-9 regular season record.

No player probably deserves a shot at playing for a contender in 2025 more than Simmons, and it just so happens there’s a contender that could use some help at safety with the Baltimore Ravens.

“Safety depth could be even more critical (for the Ravens),” Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine wrote on July 28. “Ar’Darius Washington is starting the season on the Physically Unable to Perform List. Malaki Starks will need to be a Day 1 difference-maker.”

The time to get Simmons in terms of value vs. production seems like it’s never been better. Spotrac has him projected to receive a 1-year, $5.7 million contract — the Ravens might be able to come in with a 1-year, $4 million offer with another $1.5 million in incentives.

One Incredible Stat on Simmons’ NFL Career

While it’s impossible to feel bad for someone who has over $70 million in career earnings like Simmons does, there is one wild stat about his career that needs to be shared. Not only has he never played in the postseason in his 9 NFL seasons he’s only played on a team with a winning record once, when the Broncos went 9-7 in his rookie year in 2016.

To add insult to injury, the Broncos made the playoffs for the first time since 2015 — the year before Simmons joined the team — in their first year after he left in 2024.

On any level, that has to sting a little bit.

According to Sharp Football Analysis, Simmons remains the No. 1 available free agent at safety. ESPN’s Matt Bowen still has Simmons ranked among the best available NFL free agents in the 2025 cycle.

“Simmons, an excellent communicator in the secondary, had two interceptions last season, and he has 32 in his career,” Bowen wrote. “I see his best fit as a veteran addition for a split-safety defense.”

Evaluating Possible Drop Off in Play in 2024

While the Falcons sucked in 2024, Simmons didn’t, and it seems like he may be a little bit of “guilt by association” as far as the market for his services — he started 16 games and had 62 tackles with 2 interceptions and 7 pass breakups. Those are more than respectable numbers for an NFL safety any way you look at it.

If anything, there might be some ageism at play here with Simmons, who will turn 32 years old in November. NFL teams are mostly allergic to signing borderline players once they reach a certain age, and most certainly at skill positions where speed is always such a big factor.