While the Baltimore Ravens may not be playing in the conference finals today, they will sure have plenty of linebackers on the field representing them—or at least, linebackers who once represented them. Three of them, in fact, will be competing on three different teams in today’s games. At least one of them will be guaranteed to be playing for a Super Bowl.
In the day’s ‘early’ game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tennessee Titans, we have one linebacker on each side. Most notable is Terrell Suggs, who is playing his first season outside of Baltimore since college. After breaking a whole bunch of franchise records, he moved on to the Arizona Cardinals in free agency last Spring.
In part by his request, the Cardinals released him, and Kansas City claimed him off waivers. Reportedly, he wanted to try to finagle his way back to the Ravens, but the Chiefs talked to him before claiming him to assure that he would report.
On the opposite side, there is Kamalei Correa, a former high draft pick, 42nd overall. The Ravens gave up on him after two years, trying him at both inside and outside linebacker. He’s spent the past two seasons with the Titans, largely in a rotational role, and has found some success, including five sacks on the season and 33 total tackles, six for a loss.
Either Suggs or Correa will be in the Super Bowl two weeks from now, and when his team is there, he may be looking across the way at yet another teammate. Za’Darius Smith signed a big-money deal with the Green Bay Packers in free agency in 2019, and they will be hosting the San Francisco 49ers. San Francisco does have fullback Kyle Juszczyk, so, again, this is a case in which a Raven will definitely be in the Super Bowl.
In fact, it’s guaranteed that some former Raven will win the Super Bowl, since each of the four remaining teams have a representative. Three of them are edge defenders, however, with Smith the most notable with his breakout performance with Green Bay this year, justifying the high salary he was given relative to his past production.
Meanwhile, Baltimore posted its best regular season in history in 2019 after losing Smith and Suggs (among others) in free agency. But after sitting out the first round of the playoffs since they have homefield advantage, they were taken down by Correa’s Titans in the Divisional Round. So instead of 53 Ravens winning the Super Bowl…only one former player of note will.
