Ravens Reunion With 6-Time Pro Bowler Would Boost Key Rotation

Getty Reuniting with a 6-time Pro Bowler can boost a key rotation for the Baltimore Ravens.

The Baltimore Ravens need a deeper pass-rush rotation, something reuniting with six-time Pro Bowler Calais Campbell would create. A reunion with Campbell makes sense after the Ravens saw 9.5-sack edge Jadeveon Clowney join the Carolina Panthers in 2024 NFL free agency.

Campbell isn’t a standup pass-rusher like Clowney, but he can still help, according to Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox. The latter believes “Campbell, who played for the Ravens from 2020 to ’22, is another pass-rusher who would make sense for Baltimore. While Mike Macdonald is no longer the defensive coordinator, new defensive coordinator Zach Orr was a Ravens linebackers coach in Campbell’s final year with the franchise.”

As Knox put it, “Baltimore is seeking a Super Bowl in 2024 and needs a deeper pass-rushing rotation.”

The Ravens would know exactly what they’d be getting from Campbell. Namely, an enduring force against the run who’s also had a happy, career-long habit of collapsing the pocket from the anywhere along the front.

Campbell’s presence would give Baltimore’s front seven another disruptor in the trenches teams would need to account for, along with 2023 breakout star Justin Madubuike.

Calais Campbell and Justin Madubuike Would Be Dominant

As double acts go, few in the league would be as dominant as the pairing of Campbell with Madubuike. Not after the latter announced himself with 13 sacks during a banner campaign last season.

Madubuike made pressure his speciality in the three-technique role in the guard and tackle B gap, per Next Gen Stats.

Numbers like these mean Madubuike can expect to be a marked man in 2024. Yet, he won’t become a magnet for double teams if Campbell is also in the lineup.

Teams won’t be able to ignore a still-effective 37-year-old with 106 career sacks to his credit. Offensive linemen splitting focus can lead to catastrophe.

That’s what happened when Campbell aligned next to Madubuike, en route to recording this strip-sack against the Cleveland Browns in 2022, highlighted by Aaron Day of DLineVids.

Calais Campbell with the cross chop/club/swim. Beats the blocker’s hands, corners & gets his outside hand on the ball for the strip sack!

@CalaisCampbell has 99 career sacks as of this post! #passrush

This play is a blueprint for what Campbell would bring to a pass rush still needing some oomph.

Ravens Still Need Pass Rush Help

Campbell proved he hasn’t lost the knack for getting to the passer by logging 6.5 quarterback takedowns for the Atlanta Falcons last season. The veteran can still collapse the edge, the way he did for this safety at the expense of the Minnesota Vikings, highlighted by Pro Football Journal.

Calais Campbell – safety dance, 3rd safety of
career ; 102nd career sack

Some extra juice from off the edge would be welcome after Clowney left town. The Ravens did compensate by bringing back versatile veteran Kyle Van Noy in free agency.

Van Noy will still be a key figure, particularly as a mentor to younger edge-rushers David Ojabo and Odafe Oweh. The latter is turning heads with some menacing displays this offseason, but Ojabo still has to prove he can stay healthy after missing all-but five games in two years, thanks to a torn Achilles and torn ACL.

Adding another true edge-rusher is an option, but Campbell’s return to M&T Bank Stadium would improve every aspect of how the Ravens create pressure. He’d be an excellent example for Madubuike, Oweh and Ojabo, while also getting one last legitimate chance to contest a Super Bowl.

This move would be a win-win for all concerned.