Ravens Urged to Trade Former Starting Offensive Lineman

After cutting their roster down to 85 players on August 16, the Baltimore Ravens are starting to build their 53-man roster for the 2022 regular season.

One of the most hotly-contested position battles is the starting left guard competition, with Tyre Phillips, Ben Powers and Ben Cleveland competing for the spot.

Phillips, who earned a starting guard spot out of the preseason in 2020 and 2021, has the inside track for the job after a solid training camp. He also took first-team reps during the Ravens’ first preseason matchup with the Tennessee Titans on August 11.

Despite a slow start to camp, Cleveland has looked good in recent practices and is virtually guaranteed a roster spot after Baltimore spent a third-round pick on him last year, whether or not he wins the starting guard spot.

That could leave Ben Powers as the odd man out if he doesn’t win the left guard competition, with potential salary cap savings of $2.5 million if the Ravens move on from the 2019 fourth-rounder, per OverTheCap.

But Powers has proven that he belongs on an NFL offensive line, with 19 starts over the past two seasons, so the Ravens could try to recoup some value by moving him.

Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay thinks the Ravens should dangle Powers as trade bait for an offensive line-needy team, writing on August 15:

With Baltimore showing a propensity to deal offensive linemen in the past—they traded both Ben Bredeson and Greg Mancz last year—there’s a good chance the club will place Powers on the block and move him if he continues to get outperformed by Phillips in camp.

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Potential Deals for Powers

But the Ravens’ approach to trading Powers will differ than last year’s deals involving Bredeson and Mancz.

The Ravens used their surplus offensive lineman to essentially upgrade draft picks last season – Bredeson plus a fifth-rounder netted a fourth-round pick from the Giants, for example – but Powers’ pedigree merits more than just a pick swap.

The Ravens could seek a fourth- or fifth-round pick in exchange for Powers, who would be an upgrade for a guard-needy team like the Raiders, Seahawks or Falcons.

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Powers Still Likely to Make Roster

However, Powers is likely to stick around in Baltimore due to uncertainty across the Ravens’ offensive line.

Baltimore could opt to carry 10 offensive lineman – including Powers – to have enough depth to withstand the injuries that already plague the roster.

Ronnie Stanley is still on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, leaving Ja’Wuan James as the current starter at left tackle. A preseason injury to first-round pick Tyler Linderbaum has forced Patrick Mekari to step up at center rather than backing up all five positions.

Powers has been practicing his snapping in training camp and even played a drive at center against the Titans. That added versatility could up his trade value, but Ravens offensive coordinator Greg Roman indicated that Powers was instead training to be the team’s emergency center.

With so much up in the air for the Ravens’ offensive line, jettisoning Powers before the season even starts would leave Baltimore too vulnerable to early-season injuries. If all goes well with the returns of Stanley and Linderbaum, the Ravens could look to deal Powers before the deadline, potentially to free up a roster spot for injured second-round pick David Ojabo.

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