The Ravens Need To Re-Sign CJ Mosley TODAY

I’m not 100% sure what I’m supposed to make of this video, but I’m 1000% confident that it has something to do with a certain flip night at a certain Fed Hill bar. Regardless, I think it’s clear that CJ wants to be a part of something special in Baltimore. Those are the kinds of guys you want on your side when you go to battle and those are the kinds of guys you want to build around.

Between John Harbaugh/Eric DeCosta chatting at the combine and waking up to this video, it’s becoming increasingly clear in my brain as to what the focus should be this offseason now that a certain QB contract has been unloaded (along with Crabtree). Objective #1 should 1000% be to bring back the NFL’s #1 defense and set it up for the long-term future.

I know I know I know, we have a young QB and everybody wants to build around him. That’s well and good, and that can still be accomplished. But I want to make one thing clear up front because I am sick and tired of hearing it be discussed. LeVeon Bell and Antonio Brown are NOT options. AB kinda goes without saying because the Steelers would never go for it and LeVeon controls his own destiny, but there is negative percent chance Bell comes to Baltimore. Get it out of your heads. The front office won’t go for it and you shouldn’t want it anyway. He’s going to command upwards of $15M a year, and I promise you that is not the way to go about building a winning football team in today’s NFL. You just don’t pay running backs that kind of money. Loser franchises chase top skill players in free agency, and avoiding signings like Bell are why the Ravens have been one of the top franchises in the league since their arrival in ’96. That should be enough reason as it is, so I won’t even go further as to why he’s not a system fit or a locker room fit for the Ravens. The answer to building around Lamar is very clearly through the draft.

But coming back to my main point. The Ravens had the #1 defense in the league last year. A good handful of the guys on that unit could potentially depart this offseason, whether it be through free agency or from the Ravens cutting them for cap space. I’m here to say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That goes for the identity of the entire team. It’s a defense and run-the-dang-ball kind of football team. Changes to the defense can only serve to ruin that identity. There’s enough cap room to bring back just about everybody on the defensive side of the ball, and not have to sacrifice Jimmy Smith or Eric Weddle. Those two guys may not be performing up to their cap numbers, but you’re always going to have guys that overperform and underperform their cap numbers. It’s like what goes on at the dry cleaners. At the end of the day, it balances out. The past few years we’ve gotten a good value with Mosley. Right now we’re getting a great deal on Marlon Humphrey. When Flacco’s dead cap hit is off the books next offseason, we’ll take care of him. But today we have to take care of CJ Mosley. We have the space to do it, so let’s get this done before he hits the market in 13 days and keep him in Baltimore. The only guy I’m content with letting walk this offseason is Z’adarius Smith, just because passrushers tend to price themselves out of Baltimore despite being relatively replaceable. But Mosley is a leader and too integral to this defense to let get away. Sign Mosley long-term, sign Sizzle to a 1-year deal, and let’s run it back.