Ravens: One and Done?

Dennis Pitta

No team has been ransacked and ravaged this free agency more than the defending Super Bowl Champion Ravens. They have lost nearly half of their team to retirement, free agency, releasing and trades and they are not just small names; players lost were major contributors to the Super Bowl run made by the Ravens this past season.

When you’re a winner in this league, you have assets that other teams want to take advantage of. The Patriots struggle with this every year. According to Pro Football Talk, yet another piece of the Ravens is capturing interest from other teams. Tight end Dennis Pitta has been contacted by multiple teams so far this off-season. The Ravens did a smart thing and gave the tight end a second-round tender which basically means no team can just pick him up. They need to give a second round pick in order to do so.

Ed Reed

So far this offseason, the Ravens have lost Ray Lewis (retirement), Anquan Boldin (traded to San Francisco), Bernard Pollard (released), Cary Williams (free agency), Bobbie Williams (released), Dannell Ellerbe (who was considered by most to be Ray Lewis’ replacement), Paul Kruger (free agency), Matt Birk (retirement) and now possibly Dennis Pitta - not to mention Ed Reed is visiting other teams. Can this team repeat their Super Bowl run after losing possibly ten starters from the previous run? My thought is no; even if they keep Dennis Pitta, they are in a kind of rebuilding mode that will result in a wild card birth and an early exit from the 2013 playoffs.





The Ravens are a marginal threat to the Patriots after losing all these players. Joe Flacco proved to be good enough to win the big one and deserved a payday, but in paying him they may have spread themselves too thin, made evident in all the releasings and trades. They let Anquan Boldin go over a difference of 2 million dollars basically. It takes savvy to be a contender every year. It’s not easy because everyone’s gunning to beat you, and it’s made even more difficult when you lose a bunch of key players; Ravens are one and done.

Josh Brown
@TitleTownTalkSB