{"id":30400,"date":"2025-03-04T02:51:33","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T02:51:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=30400"},"modified":"2025-03-04T02:51:33","modified_gmt":"2025-03-04T02:51:33","slug":"%f0%9f%94%a5-must-sign-1-free-agent-who-can-fill-the-ravens-biggest-offseason-need","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=30400","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udd25 Must-sign: 1 free agent who can fill the Ravens’ biggest offseason need"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Malcolm<\/p>\n

Among the\u00a0Baltimore Ravens\u2019 offseason challenges, they have to\u00a0decide what to do with a key offensive lineman. Also,\u00a0will they keep Marcus Williams\u00a0around? But there is one free agent who can help fill the Ravens\u2019 biggest offseason need.<\/p>\n
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It won\u2019t come as a surprise that Ravens need what a lot of other NFL teams need. They must secure a solid edge rusher to get this team over the top to the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n

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And the best bargain out there could be Raiders edge man Malcolm Koonce.<\/p>\n

Raiders DE Malcolm Koonce could boost Ravens<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Denver
Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Koonce suffered a season-ending injury before the 2024 campaign. So there are question marks about what he can bring to the field in 2025. But that simply makes him more affordable.<\/p>\n

He proved what he can do by finishing strong in 2023. He totaled eight sacks that season, starting 11 games for the Raiders.<\/p>\n

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Former Raiders coach Antonio Pierce\u00a0had high hopes\u00a0for Koonce back in 2023, according to the Raiders YouTube page via heavy.com.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere have been certain players who you watch from afar and you say: \u2018Man, if they just \u2013 if this happened and that happened, this might happen,’\u201d Pierce said. \u201cAnd I think Malc is a prime example.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes, you try to put a player in a certain role that doesn\u2019t fit him. And I think we found that role for Malcolm. We\u2019ve adapted to the player because he\u2019s a legit guy who can turn the corner and burn, and you can see the explosiveness. I mean that\u2019s \u2013 you know what you get on the other side, on the left side, with No. 98 [Maxx Crosby], right?\u201d<\/p>\n

And Koonce pushed hard to become an impact player.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just trying to make the best of my opportunities,\u201d Koonce said during his December 14 postgame media availability. \u201cI\u2019m trying to become a complete player and an all-around good football player in general, not just a pass rusher.\u201d<\/p>\n

His 81.5 pass-rush rate ranked No. 14 in the NFL late in 2023, according to Pro Football Focus.<\/p>\n

Ravens looking hard at the pass-rush market<\/strong><\/h2>\n

General manager Eric DeCosta said the Ravens\u00a0c<\/a>ould get a pass rusher\u00a0in the draft, according to baltimoreravens.com.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt really comes down to the best player at the time,\u201d DeCosta said. \u201cIf we’re picking at 27, and there is an edge rusher, and he is the best guy, we’re probably going to pick him. That’s going to hold through with every round.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt’s an important position. We were maybe second in the league in sacks last year, but having a continuous influx of young pass rush talent \u2013 guys that can set the edge and play the run, guys that play like Ravens, physical players who can get to the quarterback \u2013 that’s a priority for us, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Head coach\u00a0John Harbaugh\u00a0said the middle of the defensive line needs to be tough, too.<\/p>\n

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\u201cGame-wrecking defensive tackles, [it’s] kind of a big deal,\u201d Harbaugh said. \u201cPass-pressuring defensive ends, that’s kind of a big deal, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

NFL Network says Ravens will go for the sacks<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you want to listen to NFL Network\u2019s Daniel Jeremiah, he thinks the Ravens will grab a pass rusher in the first round. If, that is, the right guy is there, according to baltimoreravens.com.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there’s a lot of depth along the defensive front, not just edge rushers, but D-tackles,\u201d Jeremiah said on a conference call. \u201cIf they want to be patient, I think one comes to them.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomeone like Donovan Ezeiruaku from Boston College kind of fits what they like in rushers. He’s real long, (and) he’s firm. He’s got some power, and he’s got a lot of production. There’s going to be edge rushers there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Part of the reason teams are seeking good defensive linemen is the way the Eagles manhandled the Chiefs in the Super Bowl.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt might move some guys up in the draft for sure,\u201d Harbaugh said. \u201cI don’t think anyone’s ever not thought that way. I think the Eagles did the best job the last couple of years of hitting on guys. They drafted guys high. They paid guys a big amount of money. They’ve done a good job of building the trenches on both sides, especially on the defensive side. I do think people will be looking at how they did it.\u201d<\/p>\n

And the waters are deep when it comes to defensive lineman in this year\u2019s draft.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYou want a defensive tackle (Round 3), I mean, this is the draft to do it,\u201d Jeremiah said. \u201cThere’s a ton of them. You’ve got Jamaree Caldwell from Oregon kind of in that range. (Also,) you’ve got Ty Hamilton, Ohio State. You’ve got Omarr Norman-Lott from Tennessee, Jordan Phillips from Maryland.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere’s a lot of defensive tackles. It’s as deep of a defensive tackle draft as I can ever remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Among the\u00a0Baltimore Ravens\u2019 offseason challenges, they have to\u00a0decide what to do with a key offensive lineman. Also,\u00a0will they keep Marcus Williams\u00a0around? But there is one free agent… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30406,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30400","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\n\ud83d\udd25 Must-sign: 1 free agent who can fill the Ravens' biggest offseason need - 24\/7 News America<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=30400\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\ud83d\udd25 Must-sign: 1 free agent who can fill the Ravens' biggest offseason need - 24\/7 News America\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Among the\u00a0Baltimore Ravens\u2019 offseason challenges, they have to\u00a0decide what to do with a key offensive lineman. 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