The Baltimore Ravens are one of the deepest teams in the NFL right now at a number of key positions. With such an unusual offseason that has and will continue to limit the number of chances players will get to impress the coaching staff, the Ravens have tough decisions to make when they finally trim their roster down to 53 players on the Sept. 5 deadline. Among them will be at quarterback, where Baltimore has three players jockeying for position behind reigning MVP Lamar Jackson.
The Ravens bucked a trend by keeping three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster last year compared to the two passers they typically keep. According to coach John Harbaugh, it was because the team feared rookie quarterback Trace McSorley getting snagged before he made it to the practice squad.
“We historically didn’t carry three quarterbacks, just because you can use that extra roster spot [for] special teams, extra lineman, a specialty player, pass rusher and things like that that we’ve done in the past,” Harbaugh said during a press conference on Friday. “We’ve had the three guys who we like, and we didn’t necessarily think the guys we had would make it to the practice squad – in last year’s case, Trace [McSorley].
Though Baltimore has a wealth of talent on both the offensive and defensive lines, in the secondary, at running back, and other positions this year, they’ve still got three quarterback spots penciled on the 53-man roster.
“This year, I would say that’s the plan, and we’ll just have to see how it shakes out,” Harbaugh continued.
Jackson and Robert Griffin III should be considered locks to make the 53-man roster at this point. Jackson is the team’s franchise quarterback, especially after winning and MVP award last season. Griffin is the most experienced quarterback on the roster and has been utilized as a mentor for Jackson since 2018. That means if a third quarterback spot is still available, it’s McSorley and undrafted free agent Tyler Huntley fighting each other in training camp for it.
If Baltimore does indeed keep three quarterbacks this season, it’s likely because they want to groom someone to be Jackson’s primary backup as early as 2021 when Griffin becomes an unrestricted free agent. While the Ravens kept McSorley last year, I wouldn’t assume he’s a lock to make the team over Huntley.
McSorley and Huntley are similarly gifted athletes, effectively running the same 40-yard dash times (4.56 at Huntley’s Pro Day and 4.57 for McSorley at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine). With no edge for one player or the other in their pure athleticism, it’s going to come down to which player holds the most promise and makes the biggest strides. Though McSorley was kept on the 53-man roster last year, he got just one snap all last season. That despite all the offseason talk about using him on special teams and defense, as well as the team resting their starters in Week 17.
Huntley comes from a zone-read offense and was highly efficient in it. Huntley’s 73.1% completion rate and a 10.3 yards-per-attempt average in 2019 go to prove that. If Huntley can perform well in training camp, it’s going to be an interesting dilemma for Harbaugh and the coaching staff to make. That’s, of course, if they even keep three quarterbacks in the first place.
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