Eventually, the bill will become due. When it comes to the Baltimore Ravens, this is a team that is very much in the mix to contend for and potentially win a Super Bowl this season. Unfortunately, Lamar Jackson and the boys have yet to get past Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the deep AFC so far. While Kansas City may be varying degrees of vulnerable, can Baltimore even capitalize?
In Anthony Holzman-Escareno's "All-Paid Team of Tomorrow" post for NFL.com, four players mentioned at the top of the market to potentially get paid next are Ravens stars. That would be the NFL MVP quarterback Jackson, tight end Mark Andrews, linebacker Roquan Smith and safety Kyle Hamilton. Baltimore should try to pay all four, but there could be challenges that may arise in all that.
If I could only pay one, it would obviously be Jackson. If there was one I would be willing to let walk, it would probably be Andrews. As for Hamilton and Smith, I would try to prioritize bringing both of them back, but neither play positions that demand the big bucks on the defensive side of the ball. If they were edge rushers, nose tackles or shutdown cornerbacks, that might make things a bit little easier.
What this all boils down to is Baltimore's Super Bowl window could be closing faster than expected.
Can the Baltimore Ravens finally put all the pieces together and win it all?
It is still very early in the process, but I am starting to get around the idea that Baltimore might be my favorite to win the Super Bowl. While the Super Bowl hangover is real, it remains to be seen who it will negatively impact more next season in Kansas City or the Philadelphia Eagles. Either team potentially pulling back is a big boost for the Ravens' overall chances to come out of the deep AFC and win it all.
The other team that I really like to take the next step this season is the Washington Commanders. This feels like a team that will be battling for playoff positioning with Philadelphia all season long. Whoever wins the NFC East may win the whole thing. Once again, it feels like now is the time for Baltimore to make all of its pieces fit together. The other team to watch out for is the Buffalo Bills.
Perhaps more so than anything, I am fully convinced that whichever of these two teams, possibly both, do not get to the Super Bowl this season, it is not going to happen for either team in their current iteration. It is a shame that one of these teams is certainly going to die ripe on the vine, but that is what can happen when a team is dynastic in your own conference. The Mahomes effect, folks.
I have never been this high on the Ravens before, but I am willing to go out on a limb for them in 2025.