Coming off another disappointing playoff loss, the Baltimore Ravens are looking to take the next step and reach the Super Bowl in 2025-26.
Here are the three biggest questions that will determine if the Ravens will accomplish that goal.
Will Derrick Henry get extended?
What a signing Henry turned out to be for the Ravens last season. After inking a two-year, $16 million deal with Baltimore, Henry rushed for an AFC-best 1,921 yards and 16 touchdowns in his first season playing alongside Lamar Jackson. The dynamic duo paced the NFL’s most dynamic rushing offense in 2024.
Henry is about to enter the final year of his team-friendly deal. He surely took notice when the Philadelphia Eagles shelled out $41.2 million for an extra two years of Saquon Barkley, so Henry might want to do business while the running back market is booming. At the same time, the veteran RB is 31 years old and is bound to hit the decline of his career soon.
Do the Ravens get out ahead of Henry’s free agency and extend him this year?
Will the offensive line take a step back without Patrick Mekari?
Because the Ravens decided to pay up to keep left tackle Ronnie Stanley, they had to let left guard Patrick Mekari walk in free agency. The rest of the starting offensive line from 2024 is still intact, but there’s a hole at left guard that needs to be filled.
The favorite to win the job is Andrew Vorhees, who won the starting job last year but lost his position to Mekari after suffering an ankle injury. Emery Jones Jr. and Ben Cleveland will also be in the mix for the starting LG spot. For a team that relies on its offensive line to pave the way for its high-volume running game, this will be one of the most important decisions to make in training camp.
How good can the Kyle Hamilton-Malaki Starks duo be?
Hamilton has already established himself as one of the best safeties in the NFL. The Notre Dame product has recorded 188 tackles, 22 passes defended, five interceptions and five sacks over the last two seasons, but he’s been searching for a running mate who can take this secondary to the next level.
Enter Malaki Starks.
Starks, a three-year starter at Georgia, is an exceptional athlete who loves to patrol the middle of the field. Like Hamilton, he has the versatility to play deep or venture down to the line of scrimmage in different blitz packages. This has the potential to become the best young safety duo in the league.
