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The Baltimore Ravens seem to be sending a message to tight end Nick Boyle over the last week. The fact that the Ravens signed 12 year veteran Ben Watson and went out of the way to make wide receiver Darren Waller turn into a tight end, most likely means that Boyle's days with the Ravens will come to an end if he makes one more bad mistake.
In the late stages of the 2015 season, Boyle was suspended for the final four games of the regular season by the NFL for performance enhancing drugs. Boyle apologized and said that he will learn from it. Well, in February last month, Boyle was suspended by the NFL again for performance enhancing drugs and will be suspended for the first 10 games to start the 2016 regular season.
The Ravens just came off of a 5-11 season and are ready to put that season behind him and the organization has very little patience for players who don't learn from making bad decisions especially players who can be expendable. And given the amount of depth the Ravens are developing at the tight end position, it isn't like the organization will miss Boyle very much.
Some might say that the recent moves the Ravens have made at the tight end position might have more to do with Dennis Pitta not being in the Ravens long term plans going forward. I disagree.
I think the Ravens already moved on from Pitta when they drafted Maxx Williams and Boyle last season. This time, I think the Ravens are operating like Boyle won't be on the team in the near future. Or at the very least, operating like Boyle isn't someone who can be relied upon.
It's important that the Ravens create an environment that is all about winning. Losing seasons can be tricky. Sometimes, losing seasons can breed losing seasons due to players not being responsible and that is certainly something the Ravens want to avoid.
Boyle is certainly a talented player and someone the Ravens would love to keep if he is able to be responsible and avoid being suspended going forward. But the at the same time, the Ravens don't need Boyle.