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The Baltimore Ravens rewarded cornerback Marlon Humphrey for his outstanding play by signing him to a five-year extension. But the move is a little shocking considering left tackle Ronnie Stanley still hangs over Baltimore’s head and needs to be figured out in short order.
There’s no doubt Humphrey earned every penny of his $98.75 million deal. He’s become one of the best cornerbacks in the league, playing both inside and outside coverages while staying quiet and humble off the field. As Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said following the deal becoming official, “Marlon is the type of player we want in Baltimore.”
But with a fifth-year option already inked, the Ravens had Humphrey locked up through the 2021 season at a relative bargain of $10.24 million, according to Over The Cap. Meanwhile, Stanley is currently in his fifth-year option and set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason. As we’ve seen with recent deals for Laremy Tunsil and Lane Johnson among others, offensive tackles are an expensive priority in the NFL and teams will throw practically any number at good players.
Tunsil’s recent contract extension is set to pay him an average of $22 million a year per OTC, and it’s likely Stanley will top that. Stanley cemented himself as arguably the best tackle with a historically great 2019 campaign, doing the same through three weeks of the 2020 NFL season. Though there’s still time to get an extension sorted out with Stanley, allowing him to hit free agency would undoubtedly raise his value even further as teams try to lure him away, making it far harder for Baltimore to sign him.
Things aren’t all doom and gloom, however. Despite Humphrey’s massive new contract extension, the Ravens likely still have plenty of cap space to sign Stanley too. And with Baltimore having a history of getting deals done with its best players, there’s hope Stanley is signed next. But it’s now time for the Ravens to turn their attention to the guy protecting their most important player, Lamar Jackson; getting Stanley locked up sooner rather than later.