Baltimore Beatdown
Last week, the Baltimore Ravens received unfortunate news on the injury front when Ar’Darius Washington suffered a torn Achilles during offseason conditioning. Washington was an X-factor for the team’s defense last season, assuming a starting safety role and emerging as a key playmaker as the year progressed.
While the Ravens did draft safety Malaki Starks with their first-round pick this year, the hope was that the rookie could work in tandem with Washington and Kyle Hamilton as a versatile trio. Instead, now Starks will be set to fill Washington’s shoes alongside Hamilton as the starting safety duo.
Starks is an NFL-ready prospect and should be more than up to the challenge. However, the Ravens are now absent an established No. 3 safety on their roster. This role carries more importance for the Ravens than most teams given their appetite for multiple-safety sets and versatility in the secondary. Deploying an extra safety also allows Hamilton to more freely roam in the defensive backfield and play closer to the line of scrimmage.
The top in-house candidates to step into this role are Sanoussi Kane and Beau Brade, who are both rising sophomores. Kane was a seventh-round pick in 2024 while Brade was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Maryland before making the 53-man roster. Neither player made a significant impact in their rookie year, so are unproven commodities at the moment.
Given these factors, it’s likely the Ravens will look to add a veteran safety into the mix this summer. With this in mind, who are some of the top free agents still available that could be targets for the Ravens?
Simmons is the most prominent big-name safety still unsigned. The former All-Pro was released by the Atlanta Falcons after just one season with the team. He’s going on 32 years old and while his prime years may be in the rear view, he’s still a starter-level player with a well-rounded skill set. He’d be a seamless fit in Baltimore but might have too high of a price tag for the Ravens to sign him.
If the Ravens are looking for a familiar face to return, they could find one in signing Chuck Clark. The 30-year-old was a four-year starter for the Ravens and valuable defensive leader before being traded to the New York Jets in 2023. Clark missed the 2023 season with a torn ACL but started 12 games last season. He may not provide the same on-field impact as some other options but is a trusted veteran and could be a good mentor figure for Starks.
Whitehead has started 101 of 105 games for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jets over his seven total seasons. He’s still 28 years old, too. He’s been a consistent contributor for several years now and possesses positional versatility, which fits the profile of what the Ravens look for. He missed the second half of the 2024 season after suffering...
