Raven Country

Ronnie Stanley Took Huge Discount to Stay With Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens kept their star left tackle home on a great deal.
Jon Alfano|
Oct 9, 2022; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley (79) blocks Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91 in the first quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images
Oct 9, 2022; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley (79) blocks Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91 in the first quarter at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images | Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

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Baltimore Ravens

The Baltimore Ravens re-signing Ronnie Stanley before he could make it to free agency was a huge win in itself, and the contract they signed him to was the cherry on top.

Stanley's new deal will pay him $60 million over $30 years with $44 million guaranteed, quite a bit lower than many analysts expected. Some speculated that he could make nearly $25 million per year on the open market, but instead, he stays home for just $20 million per year.

Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley before a game against the Kansas City Chiefs
Sep 5, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley (79) on field prior to a game against the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Apparently, though, that speculation wasn't far off.

Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer reported that at least three teams were willing to pay Stanley some serious money if he made it to free agency. The Kansas City Chiefs were ready to pay him $20 million per year, the same as the Ravens, but the New England Patriots and Washington Commanders were both ready to pay him $24 million per year or more.

"Ronnie Stanley, I think, as long as Baltimore was going to put something compelling in front of him, he was going to stay," Breer said. "Kansas City was right there with them, so Kansas City and Baltimore were both at about $20 million. Washington and New England were both over $24 [million], I'm not sure how far they went."

Breer made sure to note that these conversations happened "coneptually" as Stanley never made it to the legal tampering period, which began Monday. Of course, there'd never be any illegal tampering before that point.

Questionable circumstances aside, all three teams made sense as suitors for Stanley. Kansas City and New England were both among the most popular predictions for Stanley if he made it to the market, as both needed help up front. Both teams ended up making big moves on the offensive line after missing out on Stanley, with the Chiefs signing left tackle Jaylon Moore (three years, $30 million) and the Patriots signing right tackle Morgan Moses (three years, $24 million).

Washington wasn't nearly as popular of a suitor as the AFC teams, but it makes sense in retrospect. The Commanders have a ton of cap space to work with this offseason, and adding a premium left tackle to protect young superstar Jayden Daniels would be a good use of it. They too made a huge offensive line move after missing out on Stanley, acquiring Houston Texans left tackle Laremy Tunsil in a blockbuster trade.

Even if those teams offered Stanley more money, it's clear to see that he wanted to stay with the Ravens, and they did exactly what it took to make it happen.

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Jon Alfano
JON ALFANO

Jon is a lead writer for Baltimore Ravens On SI and contributes to other sites around the network as well. The Tampa native previously worked with sites such as ClutchPoints and GiveMeSport and earned his journalism degree at the University of Central Florida.

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