The Baltimore Ravens were forced to waive Dennis Pitta after another hip injury, so why haven’t they even contacted Gary Barnidge to fill the void?
There’s no question that Jeremy Maclin answers a number of questions about the Baltimore Ravens offense. Prior to signing the wide receiver following his release from the Kansas City Chiefs, things looked quite bleak. Mike Wallace and Breshad Perriman at the top of the wide receiver depth chart does little to inspire confidence. Throw them behind Maclin, however, and it looks much better.
With that being said, the Ravens offense still has big questions about it. A big reason for that is the release of veteran tight end Dennis Pitta. After suffering another debilitating hip injury, Baltimore cut him, which is a bigger blow than some may think.
Pitta was a massive part of the passing game and the most reliable option for Joe Flacco. The tight end led the Ravens in receptions last season with 86 and ranked third on the team in receiving yards with 729. So while Maclin will help to replace the hole in production left by Steve Smith and Kamar Aiken, there’s still no proven option to replace what Pitta brought to the table. And the recent suspension of young tight end Darren Waller only further exacerbated the issue.
Subsequently, the notion of picking up another player who was cut this offseason, Gary Barnidge, would make sense. Yet, they’ve not even been in contact with the former Cleveland Brown. As reported by Callie Caplan of The Baltimore Sun, the veteran tight end had this to say regarding the Ravens:
"“They know who to contact, who to call,” Barnidge said Thursday on Glenn Clark Radio. “I just know we haven’t heard anything yet, which is fine.“I’m in no hurry,” he added of his approach to finding a new team. “I’m staying in shape. I’ll be ready when that call comes, so I’m in no rush right now.”"
This seems like a strange choice by the Ravens in an offseason that, outside of Maclin, has been full of them.
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During the 2017 NFL Draft, Baltimore needed to add youth to their defense, without question. However, they also needed to help retool their offense. With their premium selections early in the draft, they only addressed the former. That’s yet another reason they sit in their current offensive predicament.
However, to not even reach out to Barnidge might be their most egregiously curious decision yet. It was just the 2015 season when Barnidge absolutely exploded in Cleveland. The veteran now entering his 10th year in the league caught 79 balls for 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns, all career-highs by a wide margin at the time. His production slipped last year amidst the Browns’ worsening quarterback situation, but he still hauled in 55 receptions for 612 yards, though he notched only two touchdowns.
By not even contacting Barnidge, however, the Ravens are making a clear statement that they’re content to roll with the tight ends on the roster, especially since three of the five were picked up with valuable draft capital. Looking at the group, however, that seems like questionable logic, no matter if the Ravens drafted them or not.
Crockett Gillmore was taken in the third round in 2015, and has a meager 51 receptions and 604 yards to his name over three seasons. Maxx Williams was taken in the second round in 2015 and registered 268 receiving yards on 32 catches as a rookie. However, Williams ended up on injured reserve after four games and ultimately didn’t play in 2016. Then there’s Nick Boyle, taken in the fifth round in 2015. Boyle has 24 receptions and 197 receiving yards in limited work through two seasons.
Outside of those three that the Ravens drafted, Baltimore also has 2016 undrafted free agent Ryan Malleck, who has yet to play an NFL down, and 36-year old Benjamin Watson coming off of a torn Achilles last season. While there may be some upside with the trio that Baltimore drafted, none of those options are superior to what Barnidge would bring.
If the Ravens were a team heading towards a top-five draft pick, this wouldn’t be a talking point. However, with their reloaded and always strong defense, Baltimore is far better than that. At this point, however, the offense is going to hold them back even after adding Maclin. Thus, they should be looking to improve in any way they can on that side of the ball.
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Barnidge would do that for them, so you have to wonder why they haven’t already signed him, much less just given him a call. Maybe they will eventually when training camp rolls around and, if you’re a Ravens fan, you have to hope they do.