The Baltimore Ravens made a bit of news late in the week, with the team sending safety Earl Thomas home from training camp after an altercation with fellow safety Chuck Clark.
Tom Pelissero was first with the news:
#Ravens star safety Earl Thomas was sent home from the facility Friday following a fight with teammate Chuck Clark, per sources. A situation to monitor.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 22, 2020
Pelissero updated his reporting with this from the organization:
My understanding is the #Ravens told Earl Thomas to stay home today after sending him home Friday following the practice altercation with teammate Chuck Clark. No decisions yet on his status, but keeping Thomas away for now buys time for Baltimore to evaluate its options.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 22, 2020
Thomas took to social media to explain the situation, stating that a busted coverage led to the incident:
#Ravens safety Earl Thomas just posted a video of the play he says started the conformation with Chuck Clark, along with some words on the situation. pic.twitter.com/GF48Xsb2Oa
— Daniel Oyefusi (@DanielOyefusi) August 22, 2020
Thomas remains one of the top safeties in the NFL, but this has been a rocky off-season for the Baltimore safety. Thomas was involved in an altercation with his wife back in the spring, when she pointed a loaded weapon at the safety:
According to a police affidavit, Nina Thomas tracked down her husband at a short-term rental home in Austin in the early morning hours of April 13 and found him and his brother, Seth, in bed with two women.
The affidavit says Nina Thomas admitted to pointing the pistol at Earl Thomas’ head “with the intent to scare him.” She had taken the magazine out of the gun and disengaged the safety, but police noted “she was unaware the gun had a round in the chamber.”
Nina Thomas struck Earl Thomas repeatedly with her free hand before her husband eventually wrestled the 9 mm Beretta from her grasp, the affidavit said. At that point, he told the woman with whom he was romantically linked to call the police.
This incident, coupled with the recent altercation with his teammate and the organization sending Thomas home from training camp, has led to speculation that the team might be considering moving on from the safety. According to Pro Football Talk, the team could cut Thomas for “conduct detrimental to the team” and recoup his fully guaranteed $10 million salary for the 2020 season:
Thomas has a fully-guaranteed salary of $10 million in 2020. But this doesn’t mean he’s untouchable. PFT has obtained a copy of his contract, and it’s clear that the guarantee for 2020 evaporates if he’s suspended by the Ravens for conduct detrimental to the team.
It’s hardly a foolproof plan; Thomas would fight any such suspension, and the Ravens would have to show that they’ve taken all proper steps to lay the foundation for the suspension, consistent with past practices and other relevant circumstances that would allow the move to be upheld in arbitration. Lose, and the Ravens would owe him the $10 million. Win, and they save both cash and cap space in that amount.
Even if they can avoid the guarantee, cutting Thomas would result in a $5 million cap charge in 2020 and another $10 million in 2021. However, if the suspension sticks, the Ravens would balance out the 2021 cap hit with a $10 million credit.
It remains to be seen how the organization is going to handle this situation, but Baltimore added Iowa safety Geno Stone in the draft, and Stone has looked solid so far in camp. Stone has the skill-set to potentially be an option as a safety down in the box, with the Ravens moving Clark to the free safety spot, should they move on from Thomas.