When is a lot of a good thing too much? Well, I suppose, when one of the things that you have wants more than you can offer. Right now, the Baltimore Ravens have two left tackles on their hands—and both of them not only want to be a left tackle, but also want to be paid like one, and they have already paid one of them.
In October, the Ravens handed former first-round pick and first-team All-Pro Ronnie Stanley a five-year contract extension worth $98.75 million, locking him in as their left tackle for the foreseeable future. A short time later, he suffered a torn ACL.
In response to the injury, the team kicked right tackle Orlandro Brown, Jr. over to the left side, where he settled in and played at a high level. in all, he started 12 games at left tackle, including the postseason, with Stanley limited to six on the year, and he was awarded with Pro Bowl honors for the second year in a row.
Now, the former 2018 third-round draft pick, heading into the final year of his rookie contract and theoretically due a contract extension, let it be known what his intentions are. In a simple, direct, and to-the-point Tweet last night, he wrote, “I’m a LEFT tackle”.
I’m a LEFT Tackle.
— Orlando Brown Jr. (@ZEUS__78) January 29, 2021
Cue the drama.
The odds of the Ravens moving Stanley to right tackle are incredibly low, and suffice it to say that they are not going to be getting any discounts on the contract that they just gave him a few months ago, paying him roughly $20 million per season.
Stanley’s is the third-richest contract for an offensive lineman in NFL history, behind only Laremy Tunsil, who had the Houston Texans over a barrel after they acquired him via trade with an expiring contract, and David Bakhtiari of the Green Bay Packers—who also suffered a torn ACL after signing his deal. Both make over $22 million per season.
The richest contract for a right tackle is Lane Johnson of the Philadelphia Eagles at $18 million per season. The only other right tackle making more than $14 million is Trent Brown of the Las Vegas Raiders, who could potentially be facing job security concerns this offseason.
What should one make of Brown’s comments? The 24-year-old is a two-time Pro Bowler, and will be an unrestricted free agent in 2022. Can the Ravens somehow manage to keep both him and Stanley as their tackles for a long-term basis?
Baltimore does have a history of letting offensive linemen walk, going on to sign big deals in free agency, from Rick Wagner to Kelechi Osemele and Ryan Jensen, on down the line, all of whom, at the time, signed the largest contracts at their position in history. If Brown wants to play left tackle, he might have to do it in another organization. Jason La Canfora suggested that a trade may be in the offing.
Based on Orlando Brown’s Tweet, the Ravens top $ deal with LT Ronnie Stanley and what I am hearing from sources, Brown is stuck in, is only interested in playing LT and his days in BAL likely numbered. Trade may be only solution
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) January 29, 2021
