The Baltimore Ravens had nothing short of a fantastic season in 2019, taking the league by storm by breaking record after record, dominating opponents, and finishing with the best record in franchise history. It was a truly unexpected breakout on many levels by a team that was being written off early and often. However, it wasn’t just pure luck the Ravens were able to pull off such an impressive season.
They build an offensive system around their quarterback, attacked on defense with an exotic blitzing scheme, and relied not only on their stars, but also the young players that were looking to make a name for themselves. That lead to players like Chuck Clark, Orlando Brown Jr, Mark Andrews, and more stepping up and breaking out.
Looking ahead to 2020, there are a plethora of Ravens who could break out. Let’s take a look at who they are.
WR Marquise Brown
When the Ravens selected Brown with the 25th pick in the 2019 pick, they expected great things. However, they knew picking him came with risks too.
Brown stands at just 5-foot-9 and weighs 166 pounds. Those are extremely small measurables for a wide receiver, but Baltimore was clearly confident that his ability outweighed his small stature. Brown also wasn’t completely healthy when he was drafted by Baltimore. He suffered a foot injury late in the year playing for the Oklahoma Sooners and had to have lisfranc surgery to correct it. The surgery kept him out for an extended period of time, which included most of training camp and the preseason. No one knew how Brown would perform once the regular season started, but it’s safe to say he didn’t disappoint, hauling in 46 targets for 584 yards and seven touchdowns across 14 games.
Those numbers by themselves are impressive for a rookie wide receiver playing in a run-heavy offense, but what makes Brown primed for a breakout sophomore campaign is the fact that he played all of 2019 hindered by that same lisfranc injury. He was playing with a screw in his foot and said he wasn’t yet at 100%. Now with a full season under his, an offseason of hard work, and a screw removed from his foot, Brown could very well be on his way to his first 1,000-yard season.
WR Miles Boykin
Boykin was a bit of a wildcard coming to Baltimore as another receiver taken by the team in the 2019 NFL Draft. He was a late riser in the draft process and thus selected in the third round by the Ravens, who liked his unique blend of size and speed.
Boykin is 6-foot-4 and weighs 220 pounds. He ran a 4.42-second 40-yard dash and has over an 81-inch wingspan. While he dominated the preseason competition, the high hopes that everyone had for him didn’t translate into regular season play.
The former University of Notre Dame receiver finished his rookie campaign with just 13 receptions for 198 yards and three scores. It seemed like he and Lamar Jackson never got on the same page, and while he showed flashes, Boykin just couldn’t put it all together during his first year in the NFL.
However, there’s hope for Boykin. The Ravens clearly have confidence in him, as they didn’t sign a big name during free agency or select a “star” in the 2020 draft. Instead, Baltimore drafted players who can compliment him, not take away his snaps.
With Seth Roberts out of town and Boykin having the prototypical size and speed, he’s a player to keep an eye on in 2020.
G Ben Powers
When the Ravens selected Powers out of Oklahoma in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, they envisioned him becoming a steady presence on the interior of their offensive line for years to come. In 2020, he’ll finally get the chance to show off his skills.
Powers didn’t get a lot of playing time in 2019, only playing in the Ravens’ Week 17 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, in that game he performed well, giving the team a glimpse of what they could have in the future.
It seemed like Baltimore was redshirting Powers by letting him watch and learn behind one of the best right guards of all time in Marshal Yanda. With Yanda retired, the team is going to rely on Powers to have a big year in 2020 and hopefully win the starting right guard job.
Powers is a nasty finisher at the point of attack and is famous for saying that he “loves taking a grown man’s dreams and crushing them.” He’s a hard worker that plays every snap beyond the whistle. Powers learned plenty by sitting behind Yanda and absorbing everything thrown at him like a sponge. With so much uncertainty on the interior of the offensive line, now it’s time for him to step up and show what he learned.
OLB Tyus Bowser
Bowser has had high expectations ever since being drafted by Baltimore in 2017. The Ravens spent a second-round pick on him and took him ahead of players such as wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. However, he hasn’t exactly produced the way the Ravens would have liked him to so far.
In his first two seasons in the league, Bowser totaled 3.5 sacks, including just 0.5 in 2018. For him and fellow 2017 pick Tim Williams, it appeared that they had to produce in 2019 or they faced the danger of getting cut.
In what was a bounce-back year for Bowser, he accumulated five sacks while also doubling his career total in tackles. Williams, on the other hand, was out of Baltimore by Week 5. Bowser showed that he can still utilize his skills at the NFL level, and he has fully set himself up for a breakout year in 2020.
Baltimore didn’t select an outside linebacker in the 2020 Draft despite only having three primary players on the depth chart. Even with Pernell McPhee back in the fold now, Bowser should see a good amount of playing time as a key piece of the defense. He will be relied on to produce early and often, and with no one to take away his playing time, he should be able to focus on playing well knowing that the Ravens have confidence in him.
OLB Jaylon Ferguson
Ferguson is another outside linebacker who should benefit from the Ravens’ lack of additions at the position. A gameday inactive for his first two games last season, Ferguson was thrown into the fire due to injuries and lack of production from other pass rushers. While it was a year of learning for Ferguson, he showed flashes of why Baltimore selected him in the third round of 2019.
His stat line isn’t gaudy, as he finished the 2019 season with 20 tackles and 2.5 sacks. However, he went from someone who wasn’t playing at all to a key rotational piece, so a learning curve was to be expected. He got to experience what it was like to play at the NFL level and that should help him plenty going into 2020.
Much like Bowser, Ferguson will again be relied on to improve and become a key piece of this Baltimore defense. He’s a powerful player who’s bullrush can devastate opposing linemen. If he uses this offseason to improve and add new moves to his arsenal, he could be well on his way to breaking Terrell Suggs’ sack record at the pro level, since he’s already done it at the college ranks.
S DeShon Elliott
Elliott has a ton of potential but hasn’t been able to translate it to the field due to injuries. Since being selected in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, Elliott has been active for just six games. He missed all of his rookie season with a fractured arm and went to injured reserve in 2019 with a knee injury. Coming into 2020, Elliott needs to at least show he can stay healthy in order to make the roster. But if he does, Elliott is primed for a breakout role.
Elliott showed what he could be while in college. He put up 63 total tackles and six interceptions in his final year at Texas. He’s a heat-seeking missile in run defense and clearly has the ball-hawking skills to create big plays in coverage.
Though Baltimore has their starting safeties in place with Earl Thomas and Chuck Clark, Elliott should still get plenty of time on the field. Whether it be on special teams or as an extra defensive back in certain defensive schemes, Elliott will have chances to prove he can remain healthy and create big plays. At the least, Elliott could be in line to take over Anthony Levine’s floater role, which has helped turn Levine into a quiet star over the years in Baltimore.
