Baltimore Beatdown
Vote for the Baltimore Ravens’ Breakout Player of the Year for the 2024 season
The 2024-2025 NFL season is complete, but before the chapter is closed, we want a final look at the joys that came from the Baltimore Ravens’ season.
So, let’s celebrate the successes by handing out our second-annual Baltimore Beatdown Awards. Today, we begin with Breakout Player of the Year.
Beatdown contributors will offer up our nominees, but the winner is ultimately decided by you, the reader, with a poll at each article’s end.
Kyle Phoenix: WR Rashod Bateman
There’s a better argument to be made for a couple others, but as someone who argued for Bateman and saw the potential there for years, he’s my pick.
After three struggling seasons with health and not being able to lock in with Lamar Jackson, he flourished with 756 receiving yards and nine touchdown catches on 45 receptions. He went from just over 1,100 career receiving yards to 1,900. He went from four career TD catches to 13.
Count in the fact he stepped up in the playoffs with a touchdown in each playoff game and he was an impact player and a significant breakout player for the Ravens in 2024.
Nikhil Mehta: WR Rashod Bateman
After three stop-and-start seasons hindered by injuries to himself and Lamar Jackson, Rashod Bateman finally put it all together in 2024. His career-highs in receiving yards and touchdowns are clear indicators of a breakout season, but how he went about it was even more impressive.
The former Minnesota Golden Gopher finally had a fully-healthy offseason to hone his chemistry with his quarterback, and their mutual trust consistently showed up on the field. His smooth separation and excellent ball skills allowed him to consistently make plays downfield, resulting in a top-10 finish in yards per reception (16.6) and average depth of target (15.2), per Pro Football Focus. His nose for the end zone resulted in the fifth-most receiving touchdowns (11) and the fifth-highest passer rating when targeted (129.8) across the regular season and the playoffs. For good measure, Bateman also recorded first downs on more than 75% of his targets, partially due to his underrated ability after the catch (10 missed tackles forced).
Sure, the Ravens’ offense schemed up more touches for Jackson, Derrick Henry, and Zay Flowers, but that makes Bateman’s contributions even more impressive. In a pass-first offense, he could easily top 1,000 yards as a top receiving weapon. However, he appeared to fully buy into Todd Monken’s offense, never complaining about his role and always putting in the effort to block downfield. With two years and just under $13 million left on his extension, Bateman has one of the most valuable contracts in the NFL.
Joshua Reed: OLB Odafe Oweh
After hitting the ground running as a rookie with splash plays in clutch moments and finishing the season with five sacks, the 2021 first-rounder lost some of his luster following his...
