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Baltimore Ravens: 5 offseason needs in 2020

By Rucker Haringey

ORLANDO, FLORIDA - JANUARY 26: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens in action during the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl at Camping World Stadium on January 26, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - JANUARY 26: Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens in action during the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl at Camping World Stadium on January 26, 2020 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images) /
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BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – DECEMBER 29: Defensive back Chuck Clark #36 of the Baltimore Ravens reacts against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the fourth quarter at M&T Bank Stadium on December 29, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – DECEMBER 29: Defensive back Chuck Clark #36 of the Baltimore Ravens reacts against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the fourth quarter at M&T Bank Stadium on December 29, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /

The Ravens will enter the 2020 regular season with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. To win it all, they must fill these five needs. 

Lamar Jackson led the Ravens to a terrific 14-2 regular season in 2019, but the Ravens came up short against the Tennessee Titans in the AFC playoffs. Baltimore’s front office will work tirelessly to make sure they come back with an even stronger roster in 2020.

The good news for general manager Eric DeCosta is that the Ravens return a ton of roster talent from last year’s team. There simply aren’t a ton of holes to fill. That should allow Baltimore to focus all of their offseason resources to fill a relatively small number of needs. That’s an enviable position for the Ravens’ front office.

It will be more about quality than quantity for Baltimore this offseason, but they need to address the following five needs to hoist the Lombardi Trophy next season.

5. A safety to develop

The Ravens’ need to acquire a young safety is a terrific symptom of how loaded their roster is. Earl Thomas and Chuck Clark are a very solid tandem. The only concern Baltimore should have about the pair is how they’ll replace Thomas once age starts to take its toll on the future Hall of Famer.

Don’t look for Baltimore to spend any premium assets on addressing this need. It’s something they should use a late-round draft pick to solve. Again, the Ravens don’t need to find a defensive back capable of playing a ton of snaps immediately. Instead, look for them to draft a raw, talented guy who can dig in and learn behind Thomas.

The other alternative would be to find a potential reclamation project in free agency. Either is an acceptable path forward for the Ravens’ front office. The focus should be on taking a swing on a raw player with a lot of talent who might be undervalued by teams looking for an immediate contributor.

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