Maclin let go; 2 WRs added
Grant, Brown signed to receiving corps that lacks strong veteran
The official first day of free agency included confirmation of the Ravens’ two newest wide receivers and a reminder that offseason additions don’t always pan out.
Before the start of last season, the Ravens signed three accomplished veterans they hoped would strengthen a struggling offense. They moved on from two of those players, running back Danny Woodhead and right tackle Austin Howard, a day earlier. On Wednesday, they jettisoned the third, releasing Jeremy Maclin in a move that created $5 million of salary cap room and continues the team’s offseason wide receiver makeover.
Maclin’s release was seen as inevitable after the Ravens agreed to the framework of deals Tuesday with free-agent wide receivers John Brown and Ryan Grant. The team announced those deals, pending the passing of physicals, shortly after the free-agent market opened at 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Brown, who received a one-year deal, and Grant, who got a four-year pact, join a wide receiver corps that includes little experience or proven production. With Mike Wallace and Michael Campanaro (River Hill) both exploring the free-agent market, the only holdover receivers from last year’s team who are still on the roster Jeremy Maclin
are Breshad Perriman, Chris Moore, Quincy Adeboyejo and Tim White. Earlier in the offseason, the Ravens also signed former Canadian Football League receiver DeVier Posey, who doesn’t have a reception in an NFL game since 2014.
Maclin, 29, was expected to provide stability at wide receiver, but he’s now gone just nine months after his signing of a two-year, $11 million deal finalized an aggressive Ravens recruiting pitch and was greeted with much fanfare in Baltimore.
A 2014 Pro Bowl selection with the Philadelphia Eagles, he caught just 40 passes for 440 yards and three touchdowns for the Ravens. He struggled to stay healthy and never appeared to be on the same page with quarterback Joe Flacco. Perhaps fittingly, Maclin’s season — and likely his brief Ravens career — ended with the wide receiver on the sideline nursing a knee injury that prevented him from playing the final two games as the team came up short of the playoffs.
As it turned out, Maclin’s time with the Ravens bore a closer resemblance to that of Lee Evans’, rather than those of Steve Smith Sr. or Anquan Boldin, other veterans who joined the team later in their careers and had success.
For two games, it appeared that the arrangement would work out. Maclin caught a 48-yard touchdown pass from Flacco in a regular-seasonopening victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. A week later, he caught another touchdown pass in a win over the Cleveland Browns. But those were the high points for Maclin and the Ravens.
He caught three passes or fewer in seven of 12 games and had more than 60 receiving yards just once all season. He was targeted 70 times but he caught less than 56 percent of those passes. The normally mildmannered Maclin’s frustration was on display when he threw his helmet and yelled in offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg’s direction during an Oct. 1 loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Maclin also appeared to struggle with his health, which is one of the reasons the Kansas City Chiefs let him go before he joined the Ravens. He missed two games in October because of a shoulder injury, then was sidelined for the final two games because of a knee problem. He wore a red noncontact jersey in practice for much of the season.
A veteran of nine NFL seasons, Maclin has 514 career catches for 6,835 yards and 49 touchdown passes in 114 career games. He now joins a free-agent market that has been thoroughly picked through at wide receiver.
As for the Ravens, they are still looking to add more pass catchers for Flacco, even with the pending additions of Brown and Grant. The Ravens are interested in Jordy Nelson, but the recently released former Green Bay Packer spent much of Wednesday in the San Francisco Bay Area on a free-agent visit with the Oakland Raiders. Nelson will also reportedly meet with the Seattle Seahawks and New Orleans Saints, and could visit the Ravens if he is still unsigned at the point.
After getting beat out for Jimmy Graham and Trey Burton, who committed to deals Tuesday with the Packers and Chicago Bears, respectively, the Ravens remain in the market for a pass-catching tight end. Another option hit the market Wednesday when the Detroit Lions released 2014 first-round pick Eric Ebron. The Ravens liked Ebron going into the draft, but he was taken seven selections before they selected middle linebacker C.J. Mosley.
Ebron was a huge disappointment in Detroit, averaging 47 catches and 518 receiving yards over four seasons and catching11touchdown passes. He struggled with drops, but he does fit the profile of a big and athletic tight end who can stretch the field, a major Ravens need.
There was little reported movement with the Ravens’ own 10 unrestricted free agents. Center Ryan Jensen could be nearing a decisions. A 16-game starter for the Ravens last year, Jensen spent part of Wednesday in Tampa Bay meeting with Buccaneers officials. If he doesn’t sign with them, he’s expected to meet with the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday.
The Maclin cut created some salary cap space that could enable the Ravens to afford Jensen, who could be looking at a deal of $8 million to $10 million per year as perhaps the top center on the free-agent market.
However, at this point, it appears doubtful Jensen will return. The Ravens already re-signed pending free-agent guard-tackle James Hurst, and they have a potential replacement for Jensen in Matt Skura, who started 12 games at right guard last year but played center in college.
NOTE: The Ravens tendered contract offers to all seven of their exclusive-rights free agents: running back Alex Collins, Adeboyejo, tight end Vince Mayle, offensive linemen Skura and Maurquice Shakir, inside linebacker Patrick Onwuasor and cornerback Stanley Jean-Baptiste.