Ravens Are Safest Bet for Turnaround Season

The Ravens will be calling on younger players to take the leap this season as they look to bounce back from 2021. And while many are expecting wide receiver Rashod Bateman and rookie safety Kyle Hamilton to be those players, Baltimore Beatdown’s Frank Platko listed three under-the-radar players who could be “X-factors” this coming season.

“In flashes, we’ve seen the abilities of Bateman, Duvernay and Proche on display. It’s Wallace, though, who is the biggest unknown of the group. The Oklahoma State product played only 84 offensive snaps in his rookie season despite being active for all 17 games. By virtue of Marquise Brown and Sammy Watkins no longer being on the roster, Wallace will be higher on the depth chart in 2022, with a greater opportunity for playing time. He may end up being one of the most important wide receivers on the roster, in large part due to his skill set.”

“After essentially a redshirt first year, Hayes has a chance to make a carve out a legit role for himself in 2022. Given the question marks the Ravens have at the outside linebacker position, the Ravens may need him to take on consistent defensive snaps. Also, like Wallace, Hayes’ specific skill set could prove to be important. Hayes’ coverage abilities for an edge rusher were a calling card coming out of Notre Dame last draft cycle. In drafting him, the hope was that he’d be a good fit behind Tyus Bowser, who the Ravens have always dropped into coverage often because of his high-end skills in that department.

“Cleveland was expected to establish himself as a plug-and-play starter at left guard as a rookie. This didn’t exactly come to fruition, although he was limited late in the offseason by injury. Cleveland flashed at times on the field but also showed there’s legitimate room for improvement in his technique and consistency. Physically, Cleveland fits the profile as a Ravens’ starter more so than Tyre Phillips or Ben Powers, the other likely primary candidates for the starting right…