It looks like Ronnie Stanley‘s time in Baltimore is not over quite yet. Surprisingly, the Ravens were the first to announce the deal on X. Diana Russini of The Athletic quickly followed to inform us that Stanley is signing a three-year, $60MM extension with $44MM guaranteed at signing. Stanley was the fourth-ranked player on our list of the Top 50 Free Agents in 2025. 
Returning Stanley to the fold is huge for the Ravens, as this is not the year to be wanting for a left tackle. In free agency, after Stanley, the top options at left tackle are now Dan Moore, Cam Robinson, and an aging Tyron Smith, who has been reportedly mulling retirement. In the draft, a concern has been raised about needing tackles as many of the graduating tackles in the draft have been seen as better fits for the interior line by many evaluators.
Another reason this is huge for Baltimore is that it helps them to avoid doing a full offseason overhaul of their offensive line for the second year in a row. Last year, the team went to work in the offseason in order to replace both starting guards (John Simpson and Kevin Zeitler) and their starting right tackle Morgan Moses.
They attempted to fill the guard spots with Daniel Faalele and Andrew Vorhees, with their sixth-man of the offensive line Patrick Mekari filling in at right tackle. When Vorhees struggled, they shifted Mekari into the left guard spot and started rookie second-round pick Roger Rosengarten at right tackle for the rest of the season. Mekari is still currently on track for free agency, but the team has shown how much they value his versatility in the past. Even if he does leave, filling an interior lineman spot will be a much less Herculean task than if they had let Stanley walk.
This isn’t the first time the Ravens have extended Stanley, and they are likely praying that this time goes much smoother. After picking up Stanley’s fifth-year option back in 2019, the team made Stanley the highest-paid offensive lineman in the NFL following an All-Pro season in which Pro Football Focus graded him the second-best tackle in the league and named him the best pass blocking tackle in the NFL. The five-year, $112.8MM extension came partway through the 2020 season.
Two days later, Stanley was carted off the field with a season-ending ankle injury. The next season, after playing in the season-opener, Stanley was once again placed on injured reserve after undergoing season-ending ankle surgery. He wouldn’t return until Week 5 of the 2022 season, after having missed 29 of the 30 games since he signed his extension. After shaky seasons in 2022 and 2023, Stanley started every game last year, making his first Pro Bowl appearance since that All-Pro season in 2019.
Knowing this injury history and seeing as how Stanley is set to turn 31 before the 2025 season, Baltimore was reportedly hesitant to get to $20MM per year, according to Russini’s colleague Jeff Zrebiec. But seeing the other options, and the likely overpayment that is sure to occur for those secondary options, the Ravens will likely feel pretty good about the price they paid for their tried-and-true blindside blocker, especially as the negotiating period starting Monday was sure to bring in much higher offers. Stanley’s pact will see $44MM paid out over the first two years, per The Athletic’s Jeff Howe.
According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, those other options, namely Moore and Robinson, could both command up to $15MM per year in the open market now. For tackles that PFF (subscription required) graded out as the 42nd- and 53rd-best tackles in the league, respectively, that’s a steep price to pay.
Stanley was reportedly drawing significant interest from the Patriots, Chiefs, and Commanders. With the Ravens keeping Stanley off the open market, New England, Kansas City, and Washington will likely be duking it out for the Moore, Robinson, and perhaps Jaylon Moore, who’s started 12 games for the 49ers in the four years of his rookie deal.
With Stanley putting pen to paper, the Ravens have officially checked off perhaps the biggest task on their to-do list for the offseason. Key free agents like Mekari, fullback Patrick Ricard, and cornerbacks Brandon Stephens and Tre’Davious White are set to hit the open market soon, and the team still would like to improve at the cornerback, pass rusher, and interior offensive line positions. With free agency and the draft looming, the Ravens are set up well to make a push next season in an effort to get Lamar Jackson that elusive Super Bowl with his blindside tackle beside him.
UFL kicks off March 28th on FOX
Thanks for the heads up. Maybe I can actually watch it this year.
It’s pretty quality football for what’s essentially the NFL’s AAA league.
No problem. Lot of talent this season, lot of former D1 players
Best QB group of any spring league ever
@ Goku, after you talked about some of the rules for the XFL, I’m going to check it out.
You guys are making my day
And honestly the only reason i push UFL so hard is because I want us to have something decent in the spring. Permanently.
I know it’s not amazing, but it’s actually pretty good and has improved every season.
Just like the NFL, not every game is going to super exciting, but there were quite a few great ones last season.
And I keep telling people, watch the end of every game!!
Final 2 minutes are always exciting.
Unless you’re up by 19, you’re not completely safe with the rules. U got 3 point conversions and 4th and 12.
Tired D’s combined with aggressive offensive play-calling can make up 10 points in under a minute with some luck.
Patriots really needed him
Another no brainer.
Lamar is coming off of his best season yet as a pro. Of course you re-sign the guys who helped make it happen!
Nice chunk of change. With Ravens needs at corner and edge, will Mekari and Ricard become cap space casualties?
Hopefully this helps Dan Moore get a bigger contract and net the Steelers a solid comp pick for once
Your hours away from being the top OT in free agency at a high value position, where most teams need help, why not test the market and drive up the price, help yourself and the other players in the league at the same time
From a Patriots POV…
The lesson learned is that LT/RTs of quality cannot be found in FA. Interior OLs, yes, but not tackles. The 2025 draft is the polar opposite of last year’s. This year there aren’t top end tackles but there’s plenty of OTs with the necessary physical attributes that need plenty of development. Holin Pierce and Jalen Travis could be had in the middle to late rounds. They are ideal physical specimens for OT development. Moreover, there are plenty of good college (short-armed) tackles that will likely convert to guard/center. The Patriots should focus on defense. This draft is loaded with pass rushing Edge LB/DEs and one-gap DTs (this isn’t BB’s defense.anymore). The Pats can trade down at multiple points in the draft and still come away with lots of quality prospects. They need help almost everywhere. I look for them to use FA on the secondary. Peppers and Dugger were given extensions and rewarded the team with nightmarish 2024 seasons.
The best news? The Pats OL was so bad that to raise the bar, all you need is a shovel. Expect guaranteed improvement which might not be enough but is improvement nevertheless.
As for Stanley, it’s cringe worthy to have to grossly overpay for a 31yo. The Jets brought in an aging FA LT, from Dallas, last year and it was a disaster. I was glad to see he re-signed with the Ravens.
Finally, regardless how well they make out this offseason, don’t expect Washington-like miracles for the Pats in 2025. It’s going to be grinding slog of 2-3 years before they are competitive, but it will be more than worth the wait.