Ravens Secondary Ranked Second-Best in the NFL

Baltimore has play-making defensive backs.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — The Ravens' secondary is full of talented playmakers that can change the course of a game.

Baltimore is talented at cornerback with Marlon Humphrey, Marcus Peters, and Jimmy Smith.

Several young players flashed at the recent OTAs, most notably Khalil Dorsey, Chris Westry, and Anthony Averett.

The Ravens also have two solid safeties with Chuck Clark and DeShon Elliott.  Baltimore has several rookies and second-year players competing for roster spots, including Geno Stone, Jordan Richards, Nigel Warrior, and Ar'Darius Washington. Brandon Stephens, a rookie third-round pick from SMU, can also make the transition from cornerback to safety. 

Pro Football Focus ranked the Ravens secondary as the second-best in the NFL behind the Denver Broncos, who have three solid cornerbacks in  Michael Ojemudia, A.J. Bouye and Bryce Callahan. Denver also selected  Patrick Surtain II in this year's NFL draft.

The Cleveland Browns were ranked third after adding John Johnson III and Troy Hill from the Los Angeles Rams in free agency. 

Here is PFF's Ben Linsey analysis of the Ravens:

"Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters were the only teammates to find themselves inside the top 10 of PFF’s outside cornerback rankings entering the 2021 season. Granted, Humphrey has spent much of the past two years in the slot, but a healthy Tavon Young could allow him to play more on the outside next year. Humphrey is the only cornerback in the NFL with coverage grades of at least 80.0 from both the slot and outside since 2017. He brings a rare and valuable skill set to Baltimore's secondary, which also received solid play from Chuck Clark and DeShon Elliott in 2020."

In addition, Peters and Marlon Humphrey recently ranked third in the "Top 5 Batman and Robin Duos" by the NFL Network behind Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce and Browns running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. 

Humphrey led the NFL with a Ravens’ single-season record eight forced fumbles, also registering a team-high 11 passes defended.

Peters tied for the NFL’s third-most takeaways — four Interceptions and two fumble recoveries.