The 2025 NFL season is almost here, and the Ravens retur one of the best rosters in the league. With 2-time MVP Lamar Jackson at quarterback, Baltimore’s expectations this year are Super Bowl or bust. As safety Kyle Hamilton said, “If you got 8, we got a chance.”

This year' s 53-man roster is homegrown, 43 of the 53 were drafted or developed in Baltimore. The Ravens return 18 starters and a lot of key depth, but there are a few new faces as well. This includes 3 undrafted rookies who made the cut on defense, LB Jay Higgins, CB Keyon Martin, and DB Rueben Lowery. Let’s take a look at each position group and familiarize ourselves with this years’ roster.

Offense

Quarterbacks (2): Lamar Jackson, Cooper Rush

Jackson is simply Him, inarguably a top 3 player and already on a hall of fame career path. The only thing preventing the masses from admitting his greatness is a championship ring. The problem with having such a unique weapon is that it’s impossible to replace him. In the past guys like Tyler Huntley and Robert Griffin could run a similar version of Lamar’s offense. This season Rush was signed from the Cowboys as a free agent. He is a more traditional drop back passer who threw for 1844 yards, 12 TD, and 5 INT in 8 starts for Dallas. Rush is the kind of guy who can come in and win a game for you if Lamar is out for the day, but there is no long term replacement for greatness.

Running Backs (4): Derrick Henry, Justice Hill, Keaton Mitchell, Rasheen Ali

Henry ran for 1900 yards last season, and should run for a lot more this season as he climbs up the all-time rushing yardage record books. He needs 1300 yards to crack the top 10. The thunder and lightning backfield of Jackson and Henry should continue to dominate. Hill is the third down back who can run, catch, and block extremely well. He was one of the Ravens unsung heroes last year, making plays every single game. Mitchell had a strong 2023 before a brutal knee injury that sidelined him for most of last season. He is a home run hitter who can create explosive plays on offense and special teams. Ali had a strong camp but was a surprise inclusion. Typically teams only roster 3 RBs. My guess is they wanted insurance for Mitchell and liked Ali on special teams. There are more changes to kickoffs this year that incentivize returns. The structure of the new kickoff is similar to a run play, so Baltimore will likely have Mitchell and Ali together on kick returns.

Wide Receivers (6): Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, DeAndre Hopkins, Tylan Wallace, Devontez Walker, LaJohntay Wester

This might be the strongest WR room the Ravens have ever had. Flowers and Bateman will be the starters. Zay went for 1000 yards last season and remains one of the shiftiest players in the league. Bateman has emerged as an elite route runner and had a career high 9 touchdowns last year. Hopkins at 33 years old isn't the game wrecker he once was, but he showed last season in Kansas City that he still has the juice. He is the big body presence the Ravens have lacked for years and he still has extremely strong hands. Look for him to be a weapon on short yardage and red zone plays, plus a few contested catches. 5-time Pro Bowlers don;t grow on trees, expect him to be a leader in the teams’ championship quest. Wallace and Walker had excellent preseasons, they should both contribute on offense and special teams. I expect them to split offensive snaps vacated by the departed Nelson Agohlor. Wester, a 6th round rookie, made the team after he had some outstanding punt returns in the preseason. His quickness is elite and he will be fun to watch when he gets the ball in his hands. 

Tight End/Fullback (4): Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, Charlie Kolar, Patrick Ricard

The Ravens return the best tight end group in the league. Andrews led the team in TD receptions, and he will look to avenge his mistakes during last seasons’ playoff game. Likely became one of Lamar’s favorite targets, but sprained his ankle in camp and could miss some early games. Kolar is depth behind the two studs, but his blocking has improved over the years, and he is an unserious character who brings good vibes to the locker room. Ricard is still the best fullback in the NFL. A 300 pound bowling ball who can line up all over the field delivering devastating blocks. 

Offensive Line (9): Ronnie Stanley, Andrew Vorhees, Tyler Linderbaum, Daniel Faalele, Roger Rosengarten, Joseph Noteboom, Ben Cleveland, Corey Bullock, Carson Vinson

Stanley, Linderbaum, Faalele, and Rosengarten are the returning starters. Stanley and Linderbaum are some of the best at their positions, and Rosengarten had an outstanding rookie season. Faalele is the weak link of the group, his poor technique can get him in trouble despite being the biggest lineman in the NFL. Patrick Mekari signed with Jacksonville in the offseason, Vorhees will replace him at left guard. Andrew is a very strong lineman who improved his pass blocking during the offseason. He actually started the first 2 games of last season before an injury, so the continuity and chemistry on the line is strong. The Ravens got away with 8 lineman last season because Mekari had the rare skillset to play all 5 positions.

Veteran Joe Noteboom will be the swing tackle who can play either side, a great underrated signing in the offseason. Cleveland returns for his 5th season ,but has never made a serious push for a starting role. Bullock was undrafted out of Maryland, missed the cut last season and came back to play well enough to make the roster. Vinson is a large man with a lot of potential who has already made huge strides in his first training camp. He could be the heir to Ronnie Stanley in a few years. 

Defense

Defensive Line (5): Nnamdi Madubuike, Travis Jones, Broderick Washington, Aeneas “Fub” Peebles, John Jenkins

Beeks and Jones will see the majority of snaps, with Washington coming in for 3 down lineman packages and rotation. Madubuike signed a huge deal last season after a 13 sack campaign. He followed it up with another pro bowl season, but recorded just 6.5 sacks. He was double-teamed a lot more as teams became fearful of his game-wrecking ability. It will be up to the rest of the group and the edge guys to take advantage of their 1v1 opportunities. Jones had a breakout campaign last season, doing an excellent job clogging run lanes and eating up blockers. Peebles is an exciting rookie who is undersized, but uses his huge strength and surprising quickness to get past blockers. He was all over the field making plays in preseason. Jenkins, a veteran, is a massive man who will fill in as depth at nose tackles behind Jones. Jenkins will replace the now retired Michael Pierce.

EDGE (5): Kyle Van Noy, Odafe Oweh, Tavius Robinson, Mike Green, David Ojabo

Van Noy has been a revelation since joining the team in 2023, and the old man had his best season last year with 12.5 sacks. Oweh has improved every year and finally recorded his first 10 sack season. Both players had good years, but they haven’t shown up as much against the better lines in the playoffs. The Ravens defense as a whole needs to cause more pressure and turnovers to get over the hump. Tavius Robinson is a breakout candidate this year after he saw more playing time late in the season. He reminds me of Jarrett Johnson, an excellent strong  edge setter in the run game, and long and quick enough to play zone in passing situations if needed. Ojabo is a former second round pick who never really put his massive potential into results, but he will get one more chance this year to prove himself.

Mike Green, a rookie second round pick, could be the x-factor on this defense. He has an impressive arsenal of pass rush moves that the Ravens have needed for a long time. He absolutely dominated in preseason play against second and third stringers. Green also led the NCAA in sacks last season. He was a top 10 or 15 talent who fell to the Ravens late in the second because of character concerns. He has twice been accused of sexual assault, once in high school and once at the University of Virginia before he transferred to Marshall. This is disappointing after a long offseason surrounding Justin Tucker’s sexual misconduct history. However, there is very little information on either of Green’s incidents, there is no legal history and no witnesses or defendants have come forward. It is hard to make a judgement based off very little public information, but it is definitely not a good look. For now, Green is here and could make a huge impact, albeit on a very short leash. This is a huge risk/reward pick for Baltimore, they were willing to make the pick because of his massive potential.

Inside Linebackers (5) Roquan Smith, Trenton Simpson, Teddye Buchanan, Jake Hummel, Jay Higgins

Roquan Smith picked up another all-pro nod last season as the best linebacker in football and the vocal leader of this defense. Trenton Simpson was supposed to start last season, he showed flashes but made too many mental mistakes. He played much better this preseason and looked like a veteran next to the young defenders around him. The Ravens lost Malik Harrison and Chris Board in the offseason. Both players contributed on defense and were key special teams players. Hummel is a veteran who will replace Board as a special teams ace. Buchanan is a fourth round pick who is a bit undersized at linebacker but plays really fast. He was probably outplayed by the undrafted rookie Higgins, who was an All-American at Iowa. He was all over the ball in preseason, making tackles from sideline-to-sideline. Higgins went undrafted due to a poor combine and a perceived lack of speed, but I couldn’t see any of those weaknesses during the games. Higgins ran violently through blocks to make tackles, whereas Buchanan would try to run around them. To be fair to Teddye, he was playing earlier in the games against a higher caliber of opponent. Higgins could make a case for serious playing time by the end of the season, but both will start out on special teams to begin.

Cornerbacks (6) Marlon Humphrey, Nate Wiggins, Jaire Alexander, Chidobie Awuzie, TJ Tampa, Keyon Martin

The Ravens have added some great veterans to a DB room that needed reinforcements. Humphrey and Wiggins will be the starters on the outside. Marlon’s versatility to move to slot corner will allow Alexander or Awuzie to take the other outside position. Jaire Alexander is a 2-time pro bowler and former Louisville teammate of Lamar Jackson. He has struggled with injuries recently, playing just 7 games each of the past 2 seasons. The Ravens didn’t pick him up to play every snap, they just need him to be on the field to make plays in big moments. Awuzie missed time last season as well, but the 9 year veteran is a classic Ravens signing who should fit in well with Zach Orr’s defense. TJ Tampa had an outstanding camp and preseason, he will get opportunities on special teams, and hopefully he can live up to his potential. Keyon Martin wasn’t even an undrafted free agent signing. He got invited to a try out at rookie mini camp after all the free agents had been signed. All he did was make plays and forced the Ravens to make room for him. In the preseason he had 2 tackles for loss, a sack for a safety, and a pick 6. Martin’s excellent special teams performances are what earned him a roster spot.

Safeties (4) Kyle Hamilton, Malaki Starks, Sanoussi Kane, Reuben Lowery

Hamilton is perhaps the best safety in the league, but the secondary around him struggled massively. Those problem players are gone, and in comes first round pick Malaki Starks. Starks has gotten a ton of praise for his football IQ and ability to pick up the defense so quickly. He and Hamilton are versatile players, the Ravens should be able to disguise looks to confuse opposing offenses. It would have been nice to have safety Ar’Darius Washington in this group, but he hurt his achilles in the off season. Kane returns from last year as a strong safety who loves playing in the box and did well in a special teams role last year. Lowery, another undrafted rookie, made the team thanks to his versatility. He played in the slot during preseason often, and shifted back to free safety as time went on. He had a big interception in the second preseason game that showed great anticipation and ball skills. Lowery’s ability as a pure free safety probably secured the roster spot over Beau Brade.

Specialists

K Tyler Loop, P Jordan Stout, LS Nick Moore

Moore and Stout return from last year’s group with rookie Loop taking over kicking duties. Loop was outstanding in preseason, going 9/11 on field goals, including a booming 62 yarder that might have been good from 70. The regular season is a different animal pressure wise, but Loop clearly has the leg to succeed. Stout has been a disappointment for a 4th round draft pick, but the Ravens are still confident enough that they didn’t bring in any competition during camp. Nick Moore creates much needed continuity at long snapper, which is necessary with such a big change at kicker.

A note on extensions

Kyle Hamilton got a much deserved contract extension, 4-years, $100 million with $82,5 million guaranteed. This makes Hamilton the highest paid safety and locks him up through 2030, since he still has 2 years left on his rookie deal. Meanwhile, the rest of the Ravens all-time great 2022 draft class will need to be paid. Center Tyler Linderbaum’s 5th year option was declined because he was going to be paid left tackle money. He will be among the highest paid interior lineman when his deal is done. Tight end Isaiah Likely and DL Travis Jones are also on the last year of their rookie deals from the 2022 class. LB Odafe Oweh is signed under his 5th-year option and will be a free agent. The Ravens also have a big decision to make with TE Mark Andrews, he is in the last year of a big 4 year extension. The Ravens probably won’t pay Andrews and Likely together, so one will have to go. GM Eric DeCosta admitted that thinking about signing all these guys, “keeps him up at night.” And by the way, every year the Ravens don’t sign Lamar Jackson to a new long term deal, the price of the brick will keep going up.