Getty Ravens Safety Tony Jefferson in a preseason game on August 21, 2022.
The Baltimore Ravens‘ safety depth to a bit of a tough blow on Wednesday, August 31, 2022, when it was first reported by The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec that Tony Jefferson will be signing with the New York Giants. He will be reuniting with former Ravens defensive coordinator Don ‘Wink’ Martindale who the team mutually parted ways with following the 2021 season.
Veteran safety Tony Jefferson is expected to sign to Giants practice squad pending a physical, per source (@jeffzrebiec first). Veteran safety knows Wink Martindale and his defense well from Baltimore. Jefferson has started 61 career games.
After not making the Ravens’ initial 53-man roster, it was widely assumed that the 10th-year veteran would re-sign with the team either to the practice squad or active roster following further roster configuring. Jefferson was a fan favorite in Baltimore, appeared in 39 games including 35 starts, and came up with several clutch plays and memorable stops during his four years with the Ravens.
Hopefully we see Tony Jefferson pull off another miraculous play against the Steelers this year.
This one made my jaw drop! One of the best plays I’ve ever seen a Raven make.
Martindale was his play caller for three out of his four years with the team and he will have more of an opportunity to push for playing time on defense in New York as opposed to Baltimore. Had he returned, Jefferson likely would’ve been rotating with or buried on the depth chart behind starting strong safety Chuck Clark and first-round rookie Kyle Hamilton with the Ravens and sometimes see the field in sub packages on obvious passing downs.
Chuck Wiley Signs With Giants Too
Jefferson isn’t the only player that was released by the Ravens during the final round of cuts heading to the Big Apple. Zrebiec also reported that the undrafted rookie outside linebacker who flashed during the preseason is also signing to the Giants’ practice squad.
Wiley originally signed with the Ravens after going undrafted out of the University of Texas at San Antonio. Unlike Jefferson, he never played for Martindale but is the type of player that he likes to deploy off the edge and sometimes line up inside in his aggressive defensive schemes. His best game as a Raven came in Week 2 of the preseason where he recorded 1.5 sacks late in the game to help secure a record-extending win over the Arizona Cardinals.
And we have a Chuck Wiley sighting. Jarrett Guarantano saw him a lot closer than he’d have liked to. Taken down by the Chuckster 1.5 times on back to back plays. @UTSAFTBL
Ravens Restructure Ronnie Stanley’s Contract
While losing out on the chance to bring Jefferson back is an unfortunate development, a notable addition could be on the horizon. According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Ravens have restructured the contract of their First Team All-Pro left tackle by converting $8.465 million in base salary into a signing bonus to free up $6.35 million in 2022 salary cap space.
Given that their available cap space after factoring in practice squad estimates would’ve been just $760,000 according to the OverTheCap.com, this move will allow the Ravens more cap flexibility to make a move before or during the season ahead of the trade deadline.
The Ravens’ top remaining need as the roster is currently constructed is at outside linebacker and it isn’t even close. Following the successful waiver claim of former Buffalo Bills and New York Jets linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips, the team is now up to three healthy edge defenders on the active roster along with Odafe Oweh and Justin Houston. They brought back Steven Means and undrafted rookie Jeremiah Moon on the practice squad but first-year defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald’s unit is in desperate need of another proven quality depth player at outside linebacker.
Tyus Bowser won’t be eligible to return until Week 5 at the earliest since he was placed on the reserve/PUP list and will miss the first four games of the season. Even if they don’t find and sign or trade for another 3-4 outside linebacker capable of playing the SAM spot, another rotational RUSH linebacker will help keep Oweh and Houston fresh throughout games.