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The Baltimore Ravens got the guy they’ve said they wanted to re-sign all offseason, adding cornerback Jimmy Smith back to the team on a one-year deal. But you wouldn’t be alone if you’re scratching your head on just how he fits into a lineup that features two All-Pro cornerbacks in Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters.
Where I think Smith factors into the Ravens’ 2020 plans best is as insurance. Oh, he’ll get plenty of playing time this upcoming season but he provides Baltimore insurance in a couple of ways that will prove invaluable as they hunt for their third Super Bowl.
The most obvious is insurance against injury to Peters or Humphrey. Smith is still a starting-caliber cornerback capable of doing whatever the Ravens ask of him. He might not be in his prime any longer and I’d question how well he could handle the league’s top receivers one-on-one for an entire season but Baltimore could do much worse than Smith as a depth piece. If either Humphrey or Peters was to miss a few games and Smith had to start in their place, the Ravens wouldn’t be at a huge disadvantage. Given the Ravens’ injury issues at cornerback over the last five years, having this type of insurance can be the difference in making the playoffs or not.
Smith is also insurance for Baltimore’s young cornerbacks. Both Anthony Averett and Iman Marshall are guys the Ravens like and both have plenty of upside. But with Smith now on the depth chart, Baltimore can take their development a little slower and won’t feel the need to shove them on the field as often. That will ultimately pay off for both players as they can continue to learn and grow without having their confidence killed by being thrown into the fire too early.
If Averett, Marshall or a 2020 NFL Draft pick ends up supplanting Smith this season, that’s probably a good sign actually. It likely means they’ve taken a leap forward in their play and can be another long-term answer for the team.
As I noted earlier, Smith will still get plenty of playing time this season. In today’s pass-happy league, defenses are regularly putting more than five defensive backs on the field at a time. With the AFC North alone having serious weapons like Odell Beckham Jr., Jarvis Landry, Eric Ebron, and A.J. Green to contend with already (much less any draft picks that’ll be selected this year), having another solid cornerback to lean on and create more favorable matchups is imperative. As we saw last season, a solid secondary can also make up for a less than stellar pass rush and if the Ravens can get better on that front this offseason as well, they’ll definitely have one of the best defenses in the league.
The additional plus to re-signing Smith is that, while he’ll get plenty of playing time, he won’t have to play every down of every game. Having him in a slightly reduced role will hopefully help keep him healthy for the entire season, which has been Smith’s biggest issue since being drafted in 2011. He’s played a full 16-game season just twice in his nine-year career and has missed 20 games over the last four seasons. If Smith can remain healthy throughout the entire season, Baltimore’s secondary looks to be the best in the league and could be the thing that propels them to another Super Bowl.
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