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PFF Says Weddle-Hill Combo Makes the Ravens Secondary Elite

Pro Bowl Safety Eric Weddle's arrival in Baltimore means an instant upgrade in the status of the defensive backfield, towards the top of the entire league.

By Chris "Braven" Brown

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It may be time to come up with a nickname for the pairing of Ravens Safeties Will Hill III and newly signed Eric Weddle, one that forebodes excellence.

The Weddle Hill?

Third Beard Country?

Or my favorite right now,

The W'sMD (W's of Mass Destruction)?

Raven WR Steve Smith, Sr. has his own nickname for the entire Ravens culture:

No matter the moniker, the excellence to ensue is a surety. Pro Football Focus (PFF)  points this out in a current article, citing the pair as an instant Top Tandem in the NFL.

Says Senior Analyst Sam Monson, "By signing free agent Eric Weddle, Baltimore has instantly created one of the league’s best safety pairings, teaming the former Charger up with Will Hill to create a versatile and talented duo."

Weddle is 31 and has been in the league for 9 years, all with San Diego. He has been a very bright spot in a rather dismal surrounding; picture the Sun in a proverbial Black Hole. That bright.

"From 2009 to 2014, he earned a positive grade in every facet PFF measures during every single season of play for the Chargers," Monson reports. "The bottom line is that he has been one of the league’s best safeties over an extended period of time, playing for a defense that has often been bad around him. "

This chart from Pro Football Focus underscores the point:

Point blank, the green is good and the red is bad. White is average. That's a lot of green, folks. The guy is a cerebral, crafty player who still has it.

Weddle brings this talent to a Baltimore secondary badly in need of instinctive leadership. Will Hill is arguably the sole bright spot in that lineup, and now he gets deep help. " Each member of the new duo has the ability to play deep, in the box, or each take a half of the field and match responsibilities," Monson points out. "This means that the Ravens can play pretty much every coverage in the book with equal proficiency, and potentially become harder for an offense to diagnose and prepare for."

The interesting and eventful, exciting for the optimist, offseason continues in Baltimore.

The defense just got better.

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