Baltimore Ravens fans have been hungry for the team to make another trade this season. After acquiring defensive end Yannick Ngakoue from the Minnesota Vikings last week, social media has been abuzz about which players the Ravens should still be eyeing up ahead of the NFL’s trade deadline.
But not everyone feels that way. Nate Davis of USA TODAY Sports took a look at all 32 teams to determine which moves they should make at the NFL trade deadline. Davis believes Baltimore is one of the few teams that are actually well set right now and don’t need to make any more moves.
No glaring holes here, especially after the addition of DE Yannick Ngakoue. And though the Ravens are in good shape cap-wise next year, they need to re-sign LT Ronnie Stanley and will enter an extension window for QB Lamar Jackson in 2021. More depth at receiver or offensive line would be nice but also qualify as luxury moves.
Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta hinted at the team making some more moves this season following the trade of Ngakoue. Whether he was speaking about building the team long-term, adding wide receiver Dez Bryant, or actively looking to pull off another trade will have to wait to be seen. But if Baltimore is picking up the phone to gauge trade interest, it makes the most sense to look at wide receiver and tight end.
Beyond tight end Mark Andrews and wide receiver Marquise Brown, the Ravens’ pass catchers have been underwhelming this season. They aren’t helped much by quarterback Lamar Jackson, who has regressed somewhat this season, but they’re also doing him no favors either. Adding a big-bodied possession receiver or another capable deep threat would give Jackson another weapon and dramatically improve the offense across the board.
As Davis pointed out, getting some help along the interior of the offensive line would be nice but is more of a luxury at this point. The Ravens returned four of five starting offensive linemen from last year’s record-breaking unit. Even though they haven’t played up to that standard in 2020, getting an upgrade at guard or even center would be a costly proposition if one is even available to begin with.
Baltimore doesn’t need to make another trade at this point but it also wouldn’t be shocking if they did either. We’ll see if DeCosta is able to cook something up before the Nov. 3 trade deadline passes.
