5 Free agents the Baltimore Ravens could still pursue

John Harbaugh’s club has reached the playoffs three consecutive years but the Baltimore Ravens could still keep bulking up the roster with free agents.

It’s a team that has suddenly become a postseason staple once again. After a few years of being outside looking in at the NFL playoff field, the Baltimore Ravens have been back in Super Bowl contention each of the past three seasons. In 2018 and 2019, they captured the AFC North but were one-and-out in losses to the Chargers and Titans. This past season, they got revenge at Tennessee in the wild card round before being stifled in Orchard Park by the Bills.

John Harbaugh’s club is strong in many regards but the defense was weakened by the free-agent losses of Matt Judon (Patriots), Yannick Ngakoue (Raiders) and Jihad Ward (Jaguars). On Tuesday, the Ravens met with free-agent pass-rusher Justin Houston, so stay tuned.

In any case, here are five more current free agent general manager Eric DeCosta could look to add, with an emphasis on getting after the quarterback.

5. DE/OLB Olivier Vernon (Cleveland Browns)

Getting after opposing quarterbacks is what he has done best. Veteran edge rusher Olivier Vernon began his career as a third-round pick by the Miami Dolphins in 2012. He signed for big bucks to join the New York Giants in 2016 in what proved to be the last playoff appearance for Big Blue. He was then part of a trade that sent him to Cleveland in 2019.

In nine seasons with those three clubs, he’s amassed a very-respectable 63.5 quarterback traps, to go along with nine forced fumbles. He comes off a year in which he totaled 36 stops and nine sacks in 14 games with the playoff-bound Browns, but he was not available for the postseason clashes with the Steelers and Chiefs.