Baltimore Beatdown
The Baltimore Ravens finalized their 53-man roster earlier this week and were forced to cut ties with a number of players to trim their headcount. Of the players they cut, they were fortunately able to re-sign many to the practice squad, including DE Brent Urban, OLB Malik Hamm, RB D’Ernest Johnson, and C Nick Samac, among others.
However, there were a handful of released players who did not pass through waivers and were instead claimed by new teams. The biggest name from this bunch is fourth-year cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis, who was scooped up by the Tennessee Titans. The Titans had the first bid among all teams in the waiver order and evidently made Armour-Davis a priority.
The former Alabama product was a surprise cut by the Ravens, as many believed his strong preseason performances and training camp showings this summer solidified his roster spot. However, he was ultimately squeezed out due to emerging UDFAs and younger players with more years left on their contracts.
In addition to the Titans, three other teams put in waiver claims for Armour-Davis; the New Orleans Saints, Miami Dolphins, and defending-champion Philadelphia Eagles. This isn’t surprising given his mix of raw talent, physical profile and upside. The biggest obstacle for Armour-Davis has been health, as he’s appeared in 19 games through three seasons and been placed on injured reserve four separate times.
Another bigger name cut by the Ravens was safety Beau Brade, who made the team last year as a UDFA out of Maryland. Like Armour-Davis, Brade was victim to a numbers game in the secondary and the Ravens opted to choose other defensive backs over him. Fortunately for the rising sophomore, he quickly found a new home with the New York Giants.
Brade became a fan-favorite last summer thanks to his local ties but was outplayed over the past several weeks by Keyon Martin and Reuben Lowery. His special teams abilities and strong safety skills give him upside moving forward, which is likely why another team (Jacksonville Jaguars) tried to claim him as well.
Other notable players to depart elsewhere include defensive linemen C.J. Ravenell, who was also claimed by Tennessee, and Jayson Jones (Tampa Bay Buccaneers). This year’s seventh-round pick, offensive lineman, Garrett Dellinger, was not claimed by another team but rather chose not to re-join the Ravens after being released. He instead signed within the division, joining the Cleveland Browns.
Dellinger showed flashes of good play in the preseason but did not convince the Ravens to keep a 10th offensive lineman on the roster. Instead, the Ravens kept Corey Bullock and Ben Cleveland as primary backup interior options, with third-round pick Emery Jones Jr. waiting in the wings to return from injury.
