Ravens Could Make Dicey Move With Star Defender

The Baltimore Ravens could make a rather dicey move with one of their top defensive players this NFL offseason.

Sep 15, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens linebacker Odafe Oweh (99) celebrates after sacking Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew (15) during the first quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Ravens have one of the more tenuous salary-cap situations in the NFL heading into free agency, which will certainly make improving the roster difficult.

Of course, there are ways for the Ravens to open up some cap space, such as cutting or trading players or signing players to contract extensions.

In terms of the latter, we have already heard speculation that Baltimore could extend running back Derrick Henry, but what about edge rusher Odafe Oweh?

Oweh is preparing to enter the final year of his deal and is coming off of a breakout 2024 campaign in which he racked up 39 tackles and 10 sacks.

Nikhil Mehta of Baltimore Beatdown mentions a potential extension for Oweh in the coming months, but also thinks the Ravens should approach such a move with trepidation.

"Oweh is currently slated for the sixth-highest cap hit on the team at $13.25 million. That’s not a bad price for a double-digit sack producer, but an extension could save $9.7 million while keeping him around for the future," Mehta wrote.

That sounds easy enough, right? Extend a young, seemingly ascending player to keep him away from other teams while also saving money in the short term in the process. But Mehta has a caveat.

"However, Oweh is coming off a career year with an exploding edge market and will be demanding a sizable salary," he added. "The Ravens may want him to prove his production in 2025 before committing long-term money."

Oweh was a solid player prior to 2024, but he definitely significantly elevated his level of play this past season. Case in point, the 26-year-old had accumulated 13 sacks in total over his first three years in the NFL.

The problem is that Baltimore needs to clear money somewhere in order to bolster its roster for next season, and extending Oweh is one of the clearest paths to do it.

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