NFL free agency rumors: 3 players Baltimore Ravens should target this offseason

2. Marvin Jones, WR

The Ravens have the quarterback, the tight end, the running back, the defense, the coaching staff and the front office. However, one position they need to upgrade is wide receiver. This offseason may be the best time to evaluate an upgrade in free agency because this wide receiver free agent class is somewhat sizable.

In the regular season, the Ravens were last in the entire NFL with 2,739 passing yards. Yes, Jackson still threw for 26 scores, and the team totaled 27, but the club’s midseason struggles offensively could largely be chalked up to the lack of receiving help on the outside for the former MVP quarterback.

Marquise Brown was the team’s leading receiver with 769 yards and eight scores in an inconsistent year. Mark Andrews was second with 701 yards and seven scores, while Dez Bryant was brought in during the season and had 47 yards with two touchdowns in six games.

Brown is a great deep threat, but a player like Marvin Jones is the type of receiver the team needs.

Jones has been quietly a particularly good receiver during his nine years in the NFL. The Ravens should be familiar with him due to his days with the Cincinnati Bengals from 2012 to 2015, in which he had 134 receptions on 215 targets for 1,729 yards and 15 touchdowns in 43 games.

After Cincinnati, Jones parlayed those numbers into a free-agent deal with the Detroit Lions. He had 289 receptions for 4,296 yards and 36 scores in 69 games. He tallied nine scores three of his five seasons in Detroit, eclipsing that number in back-to-back years in 2019 and 2020.

Jones probably does not necessarily excite fans too much, but he should. Spotrac.com projects him to seek a deal of around $38 million for four years.