7:58pm: Along with Monroe’s inability to stay on the field lately and Stanley’s presence, Monroe’s campaign to remove marijuana from the league’s banned substances list is part of the reason the Ravens are set to move on from him, according to Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com. Hensley adds that it took until the middle of June for the Ravens to shop Monroe because they had to wait for him to get medical clearance, which he received Wednesday.
5:21pm: The Ravens are holding seventh-year offensive tackle Eugene Monroe out of practice because they’re trying to trade him, head coach John Harbaugh told reporters – including Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun – on Tuesday. Harbaugh went on to state that Monroe’s status is in the hands of general manager Ozzie Newsome, with Zrebiec inferring from the coach’s comments that Monroe will not be a Raven this season (Twitter links).
Monroe, 29, entered the NFL as the Jaguars’ first-round pick (eighth overall) in 2010 and established himself as a durable starter in Jacksonville. The Jags then traded Monroe to the Ravens early in the 2013 season for multiple late-round picks, and Baltimore was impressed enough to award the 6-foot-5, 300-pounder a five-year, $37.5MM contract the ensuing offseason.
Injuries have become an issue for Monroe, though, as he has played in just 17 of a possible 32 regular-season games since inking his big-money deal. Monroe missed a career-high 10 games in 2015 and landed on season-ending injured reserve in December with a shoulder issue. Both Monroe’s lack of durability and the Ravens’ decision to use the sixth overall pick in this year’s draft on Notre Dame left tackle Ronnie Stanley will now combine to push Monroe out of Baltimore, it seems.
If the Ravens are unable to find a taker for the ex-Virginia standout via trade and then elect to cut him, it will cost them $6.6MM in dead money versus $2.1MM in cap savings this year. They’d also be on the hook for a combined $6.6MM in dead cash the next two seasons, though they’d save $11.3MM. It might not come to that for Baltimore, though, as teams have inquired about Monroe, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). If healthy, the 90-start veteran should be able to improve someone’s offensive line.
With Monroe likely on the outs, the Ravens auditioned free agent O-lineman Todd Herremans earlier today.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Hope the colts see this
This is one of the few things we wouldn’t mind Indy stealing from Baltimore.
Pack him in a Mayflower truck and send him off!