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Ravens News 2/17: The Ravens have some difficult offseason moves to make

Ravens News for 2/17/18

Cincinnati Bengals v Baltimore Ravens Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images

To the Ravens News...

The difficult decisions all 32 teams have ahead in the 2018 NFL offseason — CBS Sports

Ownership has made it clear drafting a quarterback in the first round isn’t on the table, but 2018 is likely Joe Flacco’s last season with this team given the structure of his contract. (I’d target Tom Savage for that role; abundant upside, played well against the Ravens this year, and they’ve signed Texansbackups before). Finding skill players on offense is the priority, in draft and free agency, and before that happens I expect the Ravens, ever tight against the cap, to purge some of the elders they brought in a year ago in free agency (Jeremy Maclin and Danny Woodhead) to clear some cap room.

DURABILITY MUST BE A PRIME FACTOR IN THE RAVENS’ ROSTER BUILDING THIS OFFSEASON — BaltimoreRavens.com

Durability is the etcetera-etcetera of compliments, the yadda-yadda of praise.

But I’m here to argue it deserves more respect, especially in Baltimore, where the Ravens often point to injuries as having wrecked their plans during a recent run of non-playoff seasons.

With that history in mind and the start of free agency less than a month away, I’m here to argue that durability should be a prime consideration for the Ravens as they go about building their roster for 2018.

Their free-agent signings of a year ago illustrate why it deserves attention.

Ravens Season in Review: Jeremy Maclin — Baltimore Beatdown

I think Maclin is a fine receiver that can still put up 1,000 yards receiving. He’ll turn 30 this offseason heading into the final year of his contract. It’s unlikely Maclin ever sees big money again, but if he wants one final decent contract he’ll need to prove he can stay healthy while posting an impressive season, seeing how he’ll be 31 when his contract expires.