If the Baltimore Ravens‘ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game showed anything, it’s that they need more weapons in their aerial attack.
The contracts of wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and Nelson Agholor are expiring this offseason, so at the very least, the Ravens will need to add some depth at the position behind Zay Flowers and Rasho Bateman.
Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus sees a perfect target for Baltimore to bolster its receiving corps: Indianapolis Colts wide out Michael Pittman Jr.
Pittman played 16 games this season, hauling in 109 receptions for 1,152 yards and four touchdowns in what was the most productive campaign of his NFL career to date.
The 26-year-old, who played his collegiate football at the University of Southern California, was selected by the Colts in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
He had a decent rookie year, catching 40 passes for 503 yards and a score. The following year, Pittman broke out, snaring 88 balls for 1,082 yards while reaching the end zone six times. He then took a bit of a step back in 2022, finishing with 99 catches for 925 yards and four touchdowns.
The problem for the Ravens is that they don’t have a ton of cap room entering the offseason, with Spotrac projecting them to have about $5.7 million in space.
Baltimore could obviously make some roster moves in order to free up some money, but whether or not the Ravens would be able to move enough cash around to open up enough room to sign a receiver of Pittman’s caliber remains to be seen.
Plus, Indianapolis can always re-sign Pittman, and with nearly $70 million in projected cap space, it certainly has the financial wherewithal to do it.
One thing is for sure: Pittman will be one of the most sought-after offensive players on the open market this spring.
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