Upgrading in Trenches Tops Ravens Offseason Priority List

Finding the next head coach following the firing of Super Bowl-winning coach John Harbaugh is the Baltimore Ravens' first order of business heading into what is primed to be an offseason of significant change on both the coaching staff and personnel fronts.

There are many painful lessons to be gleaned from what was an extremely underwhelming 2025 season for the team, which came in as heavy favorites to win it all. After finishing with just the third losing record in the past 18 years, they locked into the No. 14 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft and have plenty of flaws that proved fatal over the last five months that need to be addressed.

As the Ravens and general manager Eric DeCosta prepare embark on the building process for the 2026 season, here are some goals that need to be their top priorities over the next several months.

Commit more resources to upgrading and replenishing trenches

The Ravens have deviated from their tradition of building front to back over the past two offseasons and paid dearly for it during the 2025 season. They brought back four of five starters along the offensive line, hoping that the unit would build off the continuity from 2024, and didn't add to the interior defensive line until the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft with undersized Aeneas Peebles and then signed journeyman nose tackle John Jenkins later in the spring.

By not investing significantly more into either side of the ball where games are ultimately won and lost, they left themselves open to the worst possible scenarios, and both came to fruition. The offensive line regressed instead of progressing, which played a part in their franchise quarterback having the most injury-riddled season of his career. Season-ending injuries suffered by two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike and fellow sixth-year veteran Broderick Washington neutered their pass rush to the point where it was totally inept in the biggest moments of their biggest games.

This team needs to get back to its roots of building the foundation of the roster through the trenches after years of spending their top picks on wide receivers and defensive backs. DeCosta's strategy at offensive guard in particular was extremely detrimental to the success, efficiency and consistency of the offense in 2025 and seemingly every week, one or both of Andrew Vorhees and Daniel Faalele were guilty of key missed blocks or straight up getting beat in pivotal moments over the course of the game.

In addition to selecting a prospect with guard/center flexibility high in the 2026 NFL Draft, they need to bring in an experienced veteran guard in free agency, whether it costs them a compensatory pick in 2027 or not. Hopefully, a high-quality salary cap casualty becomes available for them to pounce on as they did with Pro Bowl veteran Kevin Zeitler in 2021 after he got cut by the New York Giants.

Last year's draft class was loaded with interior defensive linemen of all shapes and sizes, and it should've been a position where the Ravens double-dipped, especially with a league-high 11 picks. They need to be prepared for not only life without Madubuike in 2026 and beyond but also equipped with more quality depth capable of rotating in and stepping up into a larger full-time role if needed. Jones was the last interior defensive lineman that the Ravens spent a top 100 pick on in the draft and they can't afford to not replenish their ranks at the position with an earlier selection.

Extend Lamar Jackson ASAP

Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta answers a question during a press conference with quarterback Lamar Jackson. — May 4, 2023; Owings Mills, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta answers a question during a press conference alongside quarterback Lamar Jackson at Under Armour Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Brent Skeen-Imagn Images | Brent Skeen-Imagn Images

Before they can make moves to add new talent and retain key starters and rotational pieces, the Ravens need to free up some much-needed cap space that is slated to be eaten up by their two-time league MVP quarterback. Jackson is currently on the books to have cap hits of $74.5 million in each of the final two years of his current contract, which he signed in the 2023 offseason.

When the Ravens made him the highest-paid player in NFL history, the plan was to always come back to the table before or following the 2025 season to ink him to another extension so that they would be able to build a competitive team around him for more years to come.

Last time around, it took a non-exclusive franchise tag, rumored collusion and a public trade request before the two sides got a deal done just hours before the 2023 NFL Draft was set to get underway. If they wait that long again and don't come to terms on a new deal, they won't have much, if any, cap room to make the kind of notable investments they need to make to retool, replenish and fortify the roster in the first few waves of free agency. They could get outbid for the services of their own players slated to hit the open market.

Retain more key pending free agents

Baltimore Ravens punter Jordan Stout (11) and Baltimore Ravens fullback Patrick Ricard (42) celebrate a big win in Week 12. — Nov 23, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Baltimore Ravens punter Jordan Stout (11) and Baltimore Ravens fullback Patrick Ricard (42) celebrate after the game against the New York Jets at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images | Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

The Ravens already began the process of preparing for 2026 and beyond by handing out a handful of extensions during the 2025 season that signaled their intentions for the future at some spots and desperation at others. With Madubuike's career status up in the air moving forward, nearly two years removed from becoming one of the highest-paid players at his position in the league, the Ravens inked Jenkins and 2025 breakout nose tackle Travis Jones to new deals. They also signed three-time Pro Bowl tight end Mark Andrews to a new deal, pretty much ensuring that fourth-year pro Isaiah Likely will depart in free agency while still leaving the door open for Charlie Kolar to return. Veteran long snapper Nick Moore received the most recent extension, having signed a four-year deal last week.

Once or possibly even before they get Jackson's extension worked out, the Ravens should try to bring back some more select few pending unrestricted free agents. The most expensive of the bunch will be three-time Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum. They declined his fifth-year option last spring because it would've blown the top off the market as his position, but he is more than deserving of getting compensated at or near the top, which is currently between $17-18 million on average.

Other players they should explore extending or re-signing include six-time Pro Bowl fullback Patrick Ricard, hybrid pass rusher Dre'Mont Jones and safety Alohi Gilman, who were magnificent in-season trades; cornerback Chidobe Awuzie, who was their most consistent corner in 2025 outside of one play where he slipped in the finale and Pro Bowl punter Jordan Stout, fresh off a breakout campaign in a contract year.

Make a major move for a premier pass rusher

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) sacks Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) on Sep 15, 2024. — Sep 15, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby (98) sacks Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) during the second half at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images | Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Ravens need to add a game-wrecker who generates relentless pressure off the edge or up the middle. Whether it comes via free agency by landing a big fish like four-time Pro Bowl defensive end Trey Hendrickson, a trade for a star veteran already under contract like Maxx Crosby of the Las Vegas Raiders or moving up from the middle of the first round into the top 10 land a blue-chip prospect like Rueben Bain Jr. of Miami, it needs to happen.

Before they became the wounded duck they currently are heading into the playoffs, the Green Bay Packers were heavy favorites to go on a deep playoff run and represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. The biggest reason this was the case was due to the presence of All Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons, who they acquired in a massive trade from the Dallas Cowboys just before the start of the regular season and had a transformative impact on not just the defense but the team as a whole. Since he went down in the team's Week 15 upset loss to the Denver Broncos, they closed the regular season out with four straight losses as their defense struggled mightily without him making plays and drawing attention so that his teammates could.

A huge reason why the Ravens developed such an unfortunate propensity for blowing double-digit leads in the later years of the Harbaugh era, particularly late in games, is that they haven't had the kind of clutch pass rusher to help them get off the field and thwart comebacks with walk-off sacks and turnovers.

The last time they had a player capable of making such plays was Hall of Fame semifinalist Terrell Suggs, who is the franchise's all-time sack leader and last played in Baltimore in 2018. DeCosta needs to get aggressive in his search for an elite pass rusher because drafting and developing, and signing bargain bin veterans with more than expected left in the tank, clearly haven't been enough to get them over the hump to reach the Super Bowl.

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