Young Raven pass rushers can headline this upcoming season

The Ravens are loaded on the defensive side of the ball with a full secondary and linebacker unit. The only worry this season, attacking the quarterback.

With Sizzle up in age, he can’t continue his dominant streak forever. That’s where Za’Darius Smith, Kamalei Correa, Matt Judon, Bronson Kaufusi, Tyus Bowser and Tim Williams take over.

Za’Darius Smith — hit a rough sophomore slump, but with his size (6’4” & 275 lbs), he should come back to make an impact on the opposite edge of Terrell Suggs.

Kamalei Correa — Still an enigma, and the biggest wildcard of the group. Some fans believe he played in a weak conference and sandbagged his way to success. The other group believes he was mismanaged his first season, with the confusion on playing inside or outside linebacker. Either way, he needs to take down the quarterback, or somehow find a way to disrupt offenses.

Bronson Kaufusi — A broken ankle in training camp kept the Ravens from finding out how impactful Kaufusi is as an interior rushing weapon. Silver lining, his injury may have kept Michael Pierce on the roster, which in turn landed the Ravens another UDFA starting talent. With Jernigan gone, Kaufusi can make a beeline to the starting inside rusher role.

Matt Judon — What an athletic player the Ravens landed in the fifth round. Last season Judon amassed four sacks and two pass deflections. If he can avoid the sophomore slump, the Ravens can start to build a rotation on pass rush players.

Tyus Bowser — Ravens fans are clearly excited about Bowser’s upcoming rookie season. His strengths are across the board, run defense, pass rush and pass coverage; he can do it all. But as earlier stated, the Ravens need quarterback’s to feel the heat, and Bowser’s combine proved he can create disruption.

Tim Williams — The best candidate for success. A clear first round talent on the field, Williams is built to punish offensive lineman. “He’s got a devastating inside counter move,” said Brian Billick, former Ravens head coach. “A fast-twitch player. Double-digit sack potential. This guy, a lot of people think a lot of him in terms of ability to put pressure off that edge.” Keep in mind, he said this before the Ravens drafted him.

This team has the players and the potential. It’s time now to reap the rewards and production. I’m already excited for training camp to begin.