The Baltimore Ravens are having a great season. They sit at 7-2 and have defeated some of the best teams in the NFL to get there. With a quarterback that is hot on the MVP trail, an offense that is seemingly too tough to defend and a defense that is improving rapidly every week, Baltimore looks like they’ll be going far this season.
For as much as football is a team sport, there are a bunch of individual Ravens players having stellar years that deserve to be recognized. With such a young roster, plenty of them have yet to get the notoriety on a national stage, but we’re here to fix that.
These six players very well could have earned their first Pro Bowl nominations with their play this season. Of course, you can always help by voting for your favorite Ravens players.
QB Lamar Jackson
We start off with the guy in the mix for the NFL’s MVP award. If Jackson doesn’t get a Pro Bowl nod this season, the league might just have to do away with the whole game.
Forget about the stats — though there are plenty to use as reasoning for Jackson to be in the Pro Bowl. Jackson has been electric on the field this season, both with his legs and arm. He’s made Pro Bowl players tackle thin air and he’s torched some solid secondaries. The NFL’s all-star game is supposed to highlight the best and most exciting players, and Jackson is the epitome.
CB Marlon Humphrey
Humphrey has taken his play to a whole different level. He’s widely considered to be one of the top cornerbacks in the league and has shut down some serious competition like Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. For that level of play alone, Humphrey deserves to make his first Pro Bowl.
Beyond his coverage skills, Humphrey has put up more points than plenty of offensive players. Humphrey has recovered three fumbled this season, returning two for touchdowns. He also has two interceptions in spite of not being targeted very often by opposing quarterbacks. Right when the Ravens have needed a big defensive play, Humphrey has routinely been the guy to show up and give it to them.
TE Mark Andrews
In his second season. Andrews has cemented himself as one of the best receiving tight ends in the league. Those that paid attention to his rookie campaign saw it coming, but that doesn’t make this season any less special for Andrews, and it should end with a Pro Bowl nod.
Among all tight ends, Andrews sits sixth in receptions and receiving yards while being second in receiving touchdowns. He’s been difficult to cover and is well known for catching nearly everything that gets close to him. What’s even more impressive is that Andrews has accomplished all this in spite of dealing with an injury all season long that has limited him at practice at times.
TE Nick Boyle
Boyle might be the last tight end you’d think about on Baltimore’s roster. Andrews and Hayden Hurst were drafted last season to start the next era, but Boyle has carved out an interesting niche for himself that is actually expanding this season.
Boyle is without a doubt one of the best blocking tight ends in the league. When the Ravens need an extra blocker on the offensive line, they’ll almost always use Boyle effectively as a tackle. But this season has seen Boyle step up his game as a receiving option.
Boyle might only have 21 receptions for 250 yards and a touchdown, which rank far down the list for tight ends. But those are career highs in receiving yards and touchdowns for the fifth-year tight end and add to his impressive blocking resume. While Pro Bowl voters might not necessarily appreciate blocking tight ends, it’s hard to ignore the best in the business.
T Ronnie Stanley
Stanley was already considered to be one of the best left tackles in the NFL. But injury concerns and somewhat lackluster offensive production caused him to routinely get ignored for the Pro Bowl in previous years. The league shouldn’t make that same mistake again in 2019.
Stanley has been the best pass-blocking left tackle in the league, according to Pro Football Focus. He’s allowed no sacks on 319 pass-blocking snaps so far this season. While Stanley gets top grades for pass protection, people often forget just how impressive he is in the run game as well, helping pave the way for Mark Ingram, Jackson and the rest of the Ravens’ rushing attack.
FB/DL Patrick Ricard
If you don’t follow Baltimore closely, you’re likely scratching your head here. I fully expect Pro Bowl voters to do the same in spite of a solid case for Ricard to get the nod here.
Ricard doesn’t get much press because . . . well, how many fullbacks actually do any more? But Ricard is a big reason why the Ravens have been so excellent running the ball this season. His tenacity as a blocker is to be expected, but it’s Ricard’s surprising speed that has seen him used quite often to block outside the tackles on run plays, helping spring Jackson on more than one occasion. Against the Bengals in Week 10, Ricard gave the perfect example of what he means as a blocker, taking his guy 10 yards off the ball and to the ground.
Ricard is also incredibly versatile. While I listed him as a fullback and defensive lineman, he’s also been thrown in at tight end more than a few times this season. He’s a rotational player on the defensive line and even plays on special teams.
At a time in the NFL when most players have highly specialized roles, Ricard does some of everything at a fairly high level. It might not be enough to sway Pro Bowl voters specifically thanks to a very limited stat sheet, but Ricard should get in because of all he offers.
