Ravens Should Consider Bringing Back Defensive End Calais Campbell

Defensive end had considered retirement.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Calais Campbell didn't want to end his career watching the postseason from the sidelines. 

As a result, Campbell wants to play at least one more season, but he is an unrestricted free agent this offseason.

"The feeling I have after seeing them celebrate a world championship, I have a desire to play football and compete," Campbell told Sky Sports. "I’m definitely not retiring. I’m coming back.” 

Campbell had a productive two years with the Ravens, starting 26 of 27 games with 47 tackles and 5.5 sacks. Campbell has battled some injuries during his time in Baltimore, but he was forced to play the majority of snaps because Baltimore lacked depth behind him.

Campbell, who turns. 36 on Sept. 1, is still an effective player has a decorated career. He could be a viable option for the Ravens.

Pro Football Focus named Campbell one of the most underrated free agents this offseason.

"This is obviously a name a lot of people know, as Campbell has racked up numerous accolades throughout his NFL career, including an All-Pro appearance, a spot on the 2010s All-Decade Team, six Pro Bowls and the 2019 Walter Payton Man of the Year to name a few. That said, many are starting to put the “washed” tag on the 35-year-old interior defensive lineman. Campbell may not be performing as he did in his prime when he rattled off four straight elite seasons with 90.0-plus grades from 2016 through 2019, but he’s still one of the best players at the position.

He earned an 80.8 PFF grade last year with the Ravens, which cracked the top 10 among qualifying interior defensive linemen, and his positively graded run play rate trailed only Aaron Donald for the best at the position. The veteran has come close to obtaining a Super Bowl ring but still hasn't hoisted the Lombardi Trophy during his 14 years in the NFL. He is ring chasing at this point in his career, and contenders — such as Buffalo — should strongly consider bringing Campbell in."

However, the team has to limit his snaps. Last season, Cambell was on the field for the majority of snaps because the Ravens had no depth behind him. Fellow defensive end Derek Wolfe missed the entire season with hip and back injuries. 

Ravens GM Eric DeCosta has spoken to Campbell about his future but the outcome is still uncertain.

“We need to get younger, for sure," DeCosta said. "This year, we had a lot of grizzly warhorses up there, upfront. Calais [Campbell] and I did talk after the season. He came up, and we spent some time talking. There will be more discussions that we have. I really admire Calais as a leader [and] as a player. He still plays at a high level and has a great attitude. He’s great for the younger guys. I’m excited about some of the other guys we have, as well, that we think will make the next step. 

"But I would say that the defensive line is definitely something that as we looked out two years ago and last year, we felt like 2022 would probably be the year that we would have to find some more young guys. We did bring in Justin [Madubuike] a couple years ago. We brought in Broderick Washington, who made a nice jump this year, but we did feel that this would be the year that we would probably be looking at defensive linemen as well.”