Getty One Ravens' DB is tipped to reach his first Pro Bowl this season.
Pro-Bowl berths were strictly beyond the members of the Baltimore Ravens’ secondary last season. Too many injuries on the back end and the decline of a once formidable pass rush made the Ravens unusually vulnerable through the air.
That vulnerability translated to allowing the most passing yards in the NFL in 2021, 4,742. The Ravens also surrendered 31 touchdown passes.
Numbers like those made it inevitable the front office would focus on retooling the secondary this offseason. Those efforts yielded two highly-touted new safeties, one of whom is tipped to make the Pro Bowl for the first time in 2022.
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First Pro-Bowl Nod Awaits Key Ravens DB
In a list of the potential first-time Pro-Bowlers this season, MMQB’s Conor Orr tipped Marcus Williams for a place at the annual all-star game: “I think we’re all curious to see what kind of identity the Ravens’ defense will take on after the departure of Wink Martindale. What we can be certain of is the success of a targeted addition like Marcus Williams, who was one of the best safeties in the NFL a year ago. Williams fits the bill as a prototypical Ravens safety, who can manipulate offenses from multiple spots on the field. He is a more than capable run defender and last year was one of the Saints’ best individual players in terms of net yards over average. He allowed an astounding sub-50% opposing quarterback completion rate a year ago.”
That last point about the stingy completion rate Williams gave up a year ago with the New Orleans Saints is key for the Ravens. It explains why general manager Eric DeCosta handed Williams a five-year contract worth $70 million, with $37 million in guaranteed money, back in March.
Williams was one of the prized gets of free agency and worth the fee for the Ravens precisely because of the difference he makes in coverage. The 25-year-old has a knack for tracking the ball in flight, along with the range and athleticism to cover ground quickly and close on intended receivers.
Those qualities were best showcased by this awesome pass breakup against the Philadelphia Eagles last season:
just watch #43 Marcus Williams (Safety on top hash) for this whole play
Plays like this will help fix the Ravens’ biggest weakness from a year ago. So will Williams’ partnership with the team’s top draft pick this year, fellow safety Kyle Hamilton.
A star at Notre Dame, Hamilton was still considered a steal with the 14th-overall pick. Part of the reason for the hype is how well he handled himself in coverage, per PFF College:
The Baltimore Ravens pick Notre Dame Safety Kyle Hamilton No. 14 overall.
91.5 coverage grade since 2019 (4th among all Safeties) 🍀
The Williams and Hamilton double act should give the Ravens one of the more secure last lines of defense in the league. Their presence is a big reason why Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus has ranked this secondary as the best in the NFL.
Living up to that billing will hinge on players other than Williams operating at a Pro-Bowl level this season. Specifically, cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Marlon Humphrey need to rebound after each suffering serious injuries in 2021.
Peters, the true shutdown corner on this roster, tore his ACL last September, while Humphrey missed the final five games of the campaign after tearing a pectoral muscle. Both Peters and Humphrey will have a better chance of rebounding quickly this season if there’s improved play from the safety spots.
Williams should make it so, but Orr’s note about his versatility offers other, intriguing possibilities about how he could be used in a rotation already loaded with talent.
More Responsibilities Will Increase Williams’ Pro Bowl Chances
Orr described Williams as a “prototypical Ravens safety, who can manipulate offenses from multiple spots on the field.” The description implies Williams could spend more time away from the centerfield spot that became his favored stomping ground with the Saints.
Safeties tend to play more varied and attacking roles for the Ravens, and that’s good news for Williams’ Pro-Bowl chances. If he can pad his stats in areas aside from coverage, he’ll have more chance of getting the recognition he deserves.
It will mean becoming a key member of the Ravens’ run support, something that shouldn’t bother a player Orr dubbed a “more than capable run defender.” Those are apt words to describe a safety who was in on 74 tackles last season, including 50 solo stops.
Williams showed his willingness to step up and make a stand against the run on this play against the New England Patriots, highlighted by Jeff Nowak of Audacy Sports:
Game Pass finally puts up the All-22 and it took all of one play for Marcus Williams to impress me. Look at where he comes from to make this tackle. #Saints
The Ravens need their safeties to not shy away from contact in the AFC North, where running backs as good as Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt and Joe Mixon hold sway. Williams should get more opportunities to play downhill and attack Mixon and Co. in the Ravens’ scheme.
It’s a scheme that shouldn’t change too much, even though Mike Macdonald has replaced Don ‘Wink’ Martindale as coordinator. Martindale loved to send defensive backs on the blitz, often using incumbent safety Chuck Clark as a seek-and-destroy QB hunter.
Clark is still on the roster, while Hamilton is also an excellent blitzer. Yet, Macdonald can throw offenses something unexpected by sending Williams on a few pressures.
That’s a possibility based on how Macdonald ran the defense for Michigan last season, according to Ted Nguyen of The Athletic: “At Michigan, Macdonald didn’t blitz as much as Martindale, but there were games when he cranked up his aggression, like against Ohio State. But he used more simulated pressures, which are pressures in which the defense rushes four but with the fourth rusher coming from a second- or third-level defender instead of a defensive lineman, rather than bringing five or six at a high rate.”
MacDonald’s penchant for making defensive backs part of his four-man rush created pressures like this one highlighted by Jonas Shaffer of The Baltimore Sun:
What could the Ravens’ pass rush look like under Mike Macdonald? Maybe not all that different from Wink Martindale’s.✍️: t.co/SFDm2Vaeet
Play 1/3: OLB David Ojabo bluffs pressure on one side while DB Daxton Hill comes from the opposite slot for an easy QB hit vs. Iowa.
Using Williams on similar zone-style pressures would add another facet to his game and make Pro-Bowl voters sit up and take notice.
The Ravens got a young, talented player just scratching the surface of his potential when they acquired Williams. His prime years will surely be spent in Baltimore and reap Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors.